


A Pursuit of the Unknown

by BeholdIAmDeath



Category: Australian Actor RPF, British Actor RPF, The Deep Blue Sea (2011)
Genre: AU Chris, Angst and Romance, Angst with a Happy Ending, Child Death, Child Loss, Coma, Coming Out, Domestic Violence, Dreams, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, Ghosts, Happy Ending, Heavy Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Multi, Paranormal, Past Lives, Possession, Unrequited Love, Violence, au tom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-26
Updated: 2014-03-26
Packaged: 2018-01-17 03:05:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 38
Words: 38,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1371601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeholdIAmDeath/pseuds/BeholdIAmDeath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Through a series of horrifyingly traumatic events, two souls meet and are joined together. Hadley is a divorced mother who may lose everything. Freddie is a wandering spirit tied to a painting. Can they make that work?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I don't own Chris, Tom, or Freddie.
> 
> Ch. 1 was vaguely inspired by Ch. 3 of Fault Lines by justmeandmymuse

Hadley stared at her phone in both worry and anger. This was the eighth time her husband, Tommy, had dropped her call. Where was he? He promised to be back home this morning after a night of drinks with their friend, Chris. Was getting breakfast more important than speaking with his wife or coming home to see his kids? Annabelle and Edgar were starting to ask why their father was nowhere to be found; he had promised to make them his famous blueberry pancakes when he got back. She typed up a message on her phone and sent it, asking why he wouldn't return her calls. He replied five minutes later:

_Busy. I'll call later._

It was nearly an hour later when he finally called her. The kids were begrudgingly eating what she made them: sausage and fruit flavored biscuits. She left them there in the kitchen to take the call in their bedroom. She didn't want the kids to hear any arguing that might occur over the phone. She and Tommy agreed early on to never argue in front of the kids if they could do anything about it. Hadley sat on their King-size bed. She knew Tommy well. He never called. When he said call, he really just meant text. Five minutes later, she finally got a text.

_How are you?_

_Fine. Where have you been?_

_I was in the middle of something._

Hadley looked at the clock. It was nine in the morning on a Saturday. What could he be doing that constituted not coming home? Hadley huffed as she lay on her back. He was always shirking off his responsibilities. He was worse than the kids sometimes. At least with them, she had a semblance of control. He was like dust in the wind.

_You done?_

For a long time there wa caused a sinking feeling in her gut.s no reply. When there was though, it

_I'm gay. I'm staying with Chris._

A dull ringing began in Hadley's ears. Surely he was just playing around. They loved each other...right?

_...Is this a joke?_

_Never been this serious about anything._

Hadley was drowning in her own body. This...this couldn't be happening. This had to be some sick joke. What was happening?!

_The fuck?! You can't just pretend your family doesn't exist!_

_I'm not. I just love someone else._

_So...you've been lying all this time?_

_No, we got really shitfaced._

_So, you had an affair over beer, and suddenly you love him?_

Hadley couldn't believe it. She had to be dreaming. Her vision was getting blurry around the edges.

_Hadley, I love Chris and I want to be with him._

_How can he be more important than me or the kids?!_

Tears flooded Hadley's vision the further the conversation went. How could he? How could Chris? She had trusted them!

_I love you guys, but I love him more. We're sorry._

Hadley didn't reply to him for a long time. She couldn't see the screen through her tears, and she was trying to keep her sobs quiet. The last thing she needed was for the kids to hear her.

_Bullshit, Tommy. You're a selfish ass._

_Are we done?_

_I still love you._

_I know._

Hadley walked down the stairs after she wiped her eyes. She had to stay strong for the kids. When she told them to pack up their things...they were curious. They asked about Tommy with those big innocent eyes. Hadley sat them down and she told them the truth. Daddy found someone else he loved more than mommy. He didn't want to be in their family anymore. They were so distraught and heartbroken. Anna actually threw up. While they absorbed the news, Hadley started packing up all their things. As she was packing her own belongings she noticed a portrait. It was of Tommy's great uncle, Freddie Page. He had been a war hero of sorts, she recalled. He died young too. Hadley always liked the picture, and Tommy never paid it any mind. She packed it up too, and started loading everything in her car.

Her parents were kind enough to let them stay in the rent house they owned until Hadley could sort things out. It was in the middle of their four acres of land, so it felt secluded. That's what Hadley needed right now. She told the kids to unpack once she designated their rooms to them. Hadley could hear them sobbing as they unpacked. They were so heartbroken over their father leaving them for someone else. Wait until they found out it was their Uncle Chris; it would crush them…maybe more than it did her. Hadley bit her lip as tears fell and she hung Freddie's photo. She gasped when Freddie turned his head to face her. Hadley blinked though and it was back to normal. Her tears were probably just distorting things.


	2. Chapter 2

Tommy unlocked the door to his home with a nervous hand. It was no longer his and Hadley's home even though he bought it with her when they found out she was pregnant with Anna. Now it was his and Chris' home. He grabbed Chris' hand as he opened the door and received a reassuring smile. He almost expected his kids to be there...to rush at his knees and welcome him home. They always tried to tackle him when he stepped through the door. Not even ghosts of them were there to greet him. The house was so empty of life. All the furniture was there, but the bookshelves and toy bins were empty. It just didn't feel like home anymore. He sighed and walked into the kitchen and poured a couple of glasses of wine.

"What's up?" Chris purred, rubbing his arms affectionately. "Talk to me."

"It's so...so empty. I know I shouldn't have expected any less, but..."

"It's okay, babe. We'll get through this together. This is a big step," Chris said, taking a drink and looking around. "Wanna show me your room?" he asked with a mischievous grin.

Tommy smiled. That was so like Chris to try to cheer him up. Hadley always just tried to get him to let his emotions out. "Sure."

Tommy took Chris' hand and led him up the stairs. He gave him the full tour, showing him the now empty kids' rooms. Then he showed him the main bedroom. Tommy led out a ragged breath at what he saw. The walls were empty of photos of a smiling family, and the silk sheets were gone from the bed. All that was there was a mattress on a four poster bed. The master bath was just as barren of life. Chris seemed to notice Tommy's despair because he pulled him down to sit on the bed with him. Everything was gone...Hadley had stolen all the light from his home when she left with the kids.

"I can't believe...I-"

"Hey," Chris cooed softly, kissing Tommy's forehead. "Cheer up. We can start a new life here. Together. No one can stop this."

Chris smiled as his mouth immediately found and latched onto Tommy's shoulder, lips working at skin in gentle kisses as a large hand trailed across Tommy's abdomen. Despite the events of the day, Tommy turned into Chris' body, responding to the arousal that clung to the other man. Chris moved his hand down Tommy's body, fingers mapping out familiar lines as Tom shifted to lie on the mattress. They both undressed themselves to save time for their union; they were rushed with need and excitement. Chris reached down still further, fingers sliding down Tommy's forearm until he reached his wrist, coiling around it. He lifted Tommy's arm and trapped his hand against the mattress. Even though he didn't use his full strength, he did apply enough pressure to give his lover a wordless order to stay put. Tommy hummed, an oddly contented purr of arousal as he held himself still, body going submissively lax.

Tommy felt Chris' hand travel down his other arm to curl around his free wrist and to pin that one as well; when Chris eased on top of him, he felt further pinned down by the stronger man. He shivered, pleasure coiling and pooling in his abdomen; he loved it when Chris used his greater strength on him. It felt so new…so good. Even though Tommy himself was strong, he still was no match for the stockier male. His eyes closed, mouth opening in a sigh as Chris' teeth ghosted over his pulse point in an intimate caress; Tommy knew that if he wanted, Chris could bite him hard enough to draw blood. Tommy bared his throat, daring Chris to do just that. He wanted to be punished.

Instead, he received a gentle kiss, with the barest press of  
lips against his jugular, before Chris shifted against him, erection brushing against his thigh. Tommy felt a fresh jolt of arousal punch through him like a battering ram, pulsing through him with an almost physical slap, and he moaned aloud, begging Chris with that noise to take him. Chris pressed down; Tommy moaned again, as Chris rolled his hips against his own.

"Chris, baby, please," Tommy said, voice barely above a whisper.

Chris mumbled something against him, words a muted rumble, and Tommy shivered, body arching as the vibrations coursed down to his cock. Chris' fingers tightened against his wrists, palms bearing down; he almost felt his bones grind together. Yes…yes, this was wonderful. Chris eased away and Tommy immediately missed the weight of the other man on him and the grinding pressure of the man's fingers on his wrists. He watched through half-lidded eyes as Chris rifled through his bag for lube, eventually finding it with a triumphant grin.

Chris knelt between Tommy's legs and squirted lube on his fingers, reaching down between Tommy's legs and smiled when Tommy hissed as cool lube met heated skin. He made sure Tommy was prepared and comfortable before easing himself upon the other man again, grabbing onto one of Tommy's wrists once again. Tommy shuddered when Chris eased in, all thick strong lines inside him, fingers hot against the skin of his wrist. He felt Chris begin to move, hips thrusting strongly, both hands now pressing his wrists.

Tommy submitted easily, body moving in time with Chris', movements only slightly hampered by the angle of his wrists pinned beside his head. Chris soon lost himself to the feel of Tommy, responsive beneath him; he could feel the heat bearing down on him, coiling in him as his orgasm grew and threatened to spill. Close…so very close. One ragged moan of his name from Tommy's lips, dragged out into a husky purr, and he was gone, shuddering out his climax into Tommy, helpless with lust and desire for the man. Finally, he freed Tommy's wrists and slid one hand between them, jerking at Tommy until he came, spilling hot and sticky between them.

"Welcome home," Chris purred.

Tommy just smiled. "Yeah…welcome home."


	3. Chapter 3

Hadley often wondered how her life had gotten to that point. This was not where she saw herself twenty years ago. Then again, twenty years ago, she had been a different woman. She had been so full of happiness and joy and life, but that Hadley had died when Tommy told her he was gay. She was a carcass hidden in one of the closets of their family home. This Hadley…the new Hadley, had been like a parasite, infecting the old Hadley and destroying her...like a weed from Hell. That's all she was really: a parasitic consciousness. The new Hadley was very good at covering up this self-loathing and need to die a happy death; the new Hadley did it for her children. They were her only reason for living. If anything happened to them…she didn't want to even think about it.

Anna. She was Hadley's first baby, and she was Hadley's pride. They named her after the poem Annabelle Lee because she was so beautiful. The angels had every right to envy her precious little baby girl. She had Tommy's curly strawberry blonde hair and their shared light blue eyes. She had Hadley's pale skin and Tommy's knobby knees. Annabelle was such a smart girl; she was at the top of her fourth grade class. She wanted to be a mommy when she got older according to a paper she wrote; her daddy was her hero.

Edgar. He was Hadley's six-year-old joy. They named after the genius poet, Edgar Allen Poe. He had Tommy's curls and Hadley's dull blackish brown hair. She had longed for him to be blonde like his sister. She didn't deserve to have such a trait passed on to such a lovely child. He had big blue eyes just like Anna did. He was the biggest drama King, just like Hadley used to be when she was his age. He was so innocent...so young. He was full of energy and life so much so that he even tired out his kindergarten friends.

Tommy had been their hero up until he left them. They idolized him, and he spoiled them rotten. He had been the one who wanted kids right off the bat. The making had been passionate and blissful both times. He cherished them both. He might have cherished them almost as much as she did. Hadley realized that it was after Edgar started school that Tommy began to grow distant. Hadley gave it her all to keep him in wrapped in her love. She gave him anything he asked for; she didn't fight with him. Nothing she did could stop him from leaving; she had not only failed her marriage...she failed her kids. She could never receive penance for such a sin. For failing her children in this Hadley deserved to rot in the deepest pits of Hell.

Hadley looked to the left of her, over to Edgar as he picked flowers in amongst the cows on the pasture they lived on. He squealed as a young black heifer followed him, trying to get to the flowers in his hand. He decided earlier to name it "Cheeseburger." Anna was sitting on a blanket with her newest book: Pride and Prejudice. The poor thing hated dirt, and look where Hadley took her? She made her come live out in the country. She could never explain how sorry she was…to either of them. Anna understood though; she had a special sort of connection with Hadley that began in the womb. Anna looked up at her and smiled before returning her gaze to her book. She was so precious; she would never understand it until she had children of her own. Hadley sighed as she looked out over the green, hilly land and at the clouds that were starting to roll away. She pulled the shawl her daughter and son helped her mother make last Christmas closer around her.

Sometimes Hadley told herself that this was all some nightmare...that she'd wake up in Tommy's arms. She imagined she'd wake up to his smiling face and that they'd make love the way they did in the mornings. Then they would go downstairs and make breakfast together and help their kids get ready. It was times like that she felt more alone than ever. She was alone in real life, but her mind dreamt of a time that would never come to pass. Tears filled her eyes, thinking of what could have been but never would be.

"Momma, what are you doing?" Edgar inquired, walking up without the heifer following. It seems she found other flowers to graze on. She moved on…just like Tommy.

"Nothing, Edgar, just thinking," she said, stroking his still-chubby cheeks with a sad smile. She could never lie to him.

"Well, you shouldn't do that, 'cause it makes you look sad," he said, handing her the flowers.

"She can't not think, Eddie."

"Can too. I said it can!"

Anna rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

Hadley smiled again. "You don't have to worry about me, Edgar."

"Do too. Cause you're my mommy and I love you. I don't want you to be sad. I want you to make sunshine smiles."

"I love you too, Romeo. You too, Anna-Bannana."

Anna rolled her eyes and continued reading. Nine going on nineteen.

Hadley smiled and picked Edgar up, hugging him close. "Come on, Nanen is making you guys her chicken dumplings, and I think Poppa just got home. I bet he brought cheesecake from the church."

Edgar squealed and tagged Anna before darting off, dodging cow pies as he went. Anna smiled and ran after him, gaining speed because of those gangly legs she got from her father. Hadley just watched them, smiling at the cute picture. Tommy would have taken pictures with that stupid camera he never left the house without. He always said the best family moments pop up in surprising places. She picked up the blanket on the ground before heading after them slowly. She watched them as they ran off, tagging each other intermittently. They would survive without Tommy. Hadley would slowly recover from it...someday. Maybe…


	4. Chapter 4

Tommy opened the door of his car and walked towards the house Hadley was staying in since the divorce. He hadn't seen it since she had started living in it. It had more light than his own home did, but not for long. It was late; it was so dark in the middle of the country. The only light he could see came from that house. Hadley still awake, waiting for Edgar...and Anna probably. Oh God, how could Tommy tell her what happened? After he told her just a week ago he didn't love her, this happened. He and Chris just wanted to take the kids to the zoo. When he came to pick them up, they didn't want to go; they looked at him with such hatred. He and Hadley made them go anyway. And then...the wreck. So there Tommy was, at the door of his soon-to-be ex's, to tell them that their daughter, Annabelle Lee Hiddleston...was dead.

After knocking, he could see a silhouette through the glass of the door: Hadley. He fought the urge to run away….far, far away into Chris' arms; she deserved the truth though...deserved to know what happened to their daughter. "Tommy?" Hadley asked. She looked so...lifeless when she looked at him like that. This would kill her. "I was just about to call."

"Can I uh...come in?" he asked. Hadley nodded and he sighed heavily. "I have something to tell you."

"Tommy," Hadley said warily. "Where are Anna and Edgar?"

"Hadley," Tommy began, "We had such a great time at the zoo. I finally got Annabelle to smile when she saw a baby hippo. Edgar wouldn't even look at me until we got to the aquarium," he paused, letting it sink in. "On the way back...Chris and I had a late night last night. We were so tired, you know," his voice broke on the last sentence, but he held back the tears. "Chris drove. He dozed behind the wheel and swerved into oncoming traffic. He woke up and swerved so he wouldn't hit them, but...he over compensated and flipped the car," he looked up. She was pale. "Anna...Hadley, she didn't make it."

There was a shocking stillness for several minutes. It felt like an eternity. The crack of Hadley's hand against Tommy's cheek was so loud in the quiet room. She collapsed to her knees and began wailing...screaming and sobbing. Tommy finally dropped his gaze to the floor and let tears flow. "God, please no, not my baby. Don't take my baby away!" she sobbed.

Tommy was still staring at the floor, shaking with silent tears that dripped steadily onto the carpet. He looked as though it was all over because it was. "Hadley, I'm sorry, for everything," his eyes were still wet from tears. But what good was "sorry" when their daughter was dead?

"I want...want to see them. I want to see my kids."

Tommy stood in the living room, waiting for Hadley to follow him back to the car, so that he could take her to see Edgar and Anna's body. It was silent in the car; he was very aware of the tense, awkward silence between them. It seemed to take hours to get there, even though it was only a few minutes in reality. He should have made Chris come along. When they got to the hospital, he led Hadley to the morgue. He didn't look at her though. Anna looked so peaceful, as if she was sleeping. Tommy watched as Hadley walked up to her and undid the ponytail so her hair fell back into its naturally curly mess before gently cradling her cheek. "Annabelle," she choked. "I-It's me...it's mommy. I-I know you can't hear me but...I just want you to know how much I love you. I love you so much baby girl. I have to go, Annabelle. I'm sorry I let this happen to you." She stood and didn't look at him. "Take me to my son, Tommy."

Tommy took her to the room. The children's wing was covered in elephants and circus clowns. It was like they were trying to hide the fact that bad things happened there, that Death walked these same halls that parents and children did. They weren't fooling Tommy though. He'd just seen Death take his daughter; he could sense it here too. Edgar was in room 404; the window had such a gorgeous view...not that his son could appreciate it right now. When he opened the door, he saw Chris pacing the floor with a cup of steaming coffee in his wrapped hand. He looked so torn up. Tommy went to him quietly so as not to wake Edgar. He just got out of surgery a few short minutes ago. Hadley glared maliciously at Chris.

"Both of you...get the hell out of here," she snarled while scanning through Edgar's files. She was always one to snoop through medical files instead of waiting for a doctor's own words. Hadley bit her lip as she turned a page, and then she gasped.

"What is it?" Chris asked, suddenly broken from his reverie of holding Tommy close. "Is he going to be okay?"

"He's...he's permanently blind," she said quietly before sitting on the bed and taking Edgar's hand, careful of the IV. "Oh baby, mommy is so sorry. I'm so sorry I let them take you."

Tommy winced at that.

"M-Momma?"

"Hey Edgar, how are you?"

"I-I can't see...I can't see Mommy," Edgar whimpered. His heart was starting to race. The monitor was beeping away faster and faster.

"Shhh, shhh," she cooed, crawling into bed with him. She glared at Tommy and Chris and pointed to the door. "I'm here. You're okay. Just go back to sleep." The heart monitor began to slow down to a normal level again. That was something only Hadley, his mother, could do. As hard as Tommy tried, he would never be able to be like Hadley.

Chris squeezed Tom's shoulder and motioned for the door. Tommy looked at Hadley and Edgar one last time. Edgar was asleep again, and Hadley was crying. Looking away, Tommy walked away with his lover, and they went home.


	5. Chapter 5

Where was she? Hadley was in a small, dirty room. It smelled like a too-warm dead body. There were bodies of people she didn't know in the corners; they had bullets in their heads. Their eyes told stories of horrific events that happened to them just before death. Old injuries told of other things that happened long before their death. There was a man in the corner...he looked so familiar. Why? He was awake, staring at the ceiling with his forehead creased in pain. It was a familiar look. His chest was rising and falling at a rate faster than normal, and he was covered in sweat, his shirt plastered to his skin.

Hadley tried to crawl over, but she grimaced. Looking down, she noticed her leg was broken in two places. Part of her break was pushing against her skin. Getting down on her belly, Hadley army-crawled over and put a hand on his forehead, but he forcefully pushed her arm away, his eyes darting from the ceiling to her face. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes. His eyes looked wildly around her, and he started murmuring something unintelligible. Out of all of those unintelligible words and phrases, Hadley heard something she understood: "I-I'm dying...aren't I, Dr. Cuzcard?" he asked.

His skin felt warm to the touch…too warm. "I'm afraid so, Freddie." Wait, when did she acquire a man's voice? Was she…was she having a dream? If so, this was no dream she'd ever had before.

The man's tear-filled eyes darted to meet hers, and, after a few moments, he seemed to calm. Hadley eased him onto a blanket and peeled his sweat-soaked shirt off. How had she gotten so brown...or hairy for that matter? "Drink some water, Freddie. It will make the passing easier on you."

Freddie lifted himself and took two small sips of water from a canteen. Hadley drank some water as well before sitting next to the man, stretching her meaty broken leg out. The malarial fever would soon kill him. Then the captors would kill her when they realized they had lost their only bargaining chip. A sharp gasp escaped the man. He was clutching at his stomach. "Don't leave me. Please," he whispered. "I-I think it's…I don't want to die alone."

"I'm right here, Freddie."

"Do you hear that music? They're playing music. It sounds so sad. Why do you think that is, doctor?"

He was starting to hallucinate. Hadley lay down sideways so she was facing him. She ran her hand through his damp hair, massaging his scalp in an attempt to offer comfort as he passed. Was she crying? She kept it up until the man relaxed into death. She heard a door open. A gun was pressed to her head; it fired.

* * *

Hadley woke with a sharp gasp from her nightmare. She shot up from the hospital bed where she was still laying with Edgar. Her heart was hammering in her chest from the vivid dream of...who was that? He looked like an older version of Tommy. Wait. He looked like Freddie Page...from the portrait in her bedroom. Hadley pulled out her phone and looked at her wallpaper: a photo of her kids in front of the picture. Oh Anna Banana. She would never get to hear her laughter again…never get to see those eyes or that little smile. Hadley started crying silently and kissed her baby boy's head of curls.

Suddenly, she heard a knock at the door. "C-Come in," she said quietly. The door opened, but no one was there. Hadley felt a chill run up her spine. "I-Is someone there? Do you need something?" she called softly.

When she went to the door to shut it again, Hadley felt a hand on her shoulder...but no one was there. It started to pat her there. She shut the door and flicked on the light. Nothing was there…no one except her and Edgar. She turned it back off and heard someone softly call her name from somewhere in the distance. But where would that be? Hadley shook it off and climbed back onto the bed, letting her son snuggle up against her. He pressed his face into her breasts and she smiled sadly. At least he would never hurt his future wife like Tommy did her. However, she couldn't get the feeling of being watched out of her head. She turned on the TV quietly and tried to sleep. When she did, Freddie Page constantly invaded her eyes, his eyes boring into her soul.


	6. Chapter 6

Edgar woke up to the sound of his momma crying in bed again. Ever since daddy had left, she had been crying a lot. Now that Anna was gone too, she cried even more. Edgar slept in her bed every night now because he felt lonely like she did. It helped him sleep knowing she was there…that he wasn't truly all alone. Since he couldn't see anymore, she had to help him with everything. He hated it almost as much as he hated hearing his momma cry. She made him wear his stuffy suit that he only wore for special occasions like momma and daddy's anniversary dinner or Christmas services at church. Momma said they were going to say goodbye to Anna for the last time. Edgar wouldn't even be able to see her body like momma and daddy could. That thought made him cry with his momma.

Later that day, one of momma's friends came to pick them up and take them over to the church. It was Aunt Margaret from the police station where momma worked; he could tell by the high pitched voice that it was her. She was crying too when they got there. At the funeral, Edgar could hear his daddy's voice and Uncle Chris' too. It made Edgar tense up as soon as he heard them. This was all his daddy's fault; if he hadn't left momma and their family to be with Uncle Chris then this wouldn't be happening. Poppa said that being with a man was bad; he was the one that preached the funeral. When Poppa cried on stage into the microphone, it made Edgar cry too. Momma cried hard…very hard, and he could hear his daddy crying too. He hated his daddy.

When they arrived at Anna's tombstone, Momma explained what it looked like to him. Anna was in a pretty pink and green coffin; those were her favorite colors. She wore the pretty dress she wore for their first day of school this year too; it was one of Edgar's favorites. Her tombstone had angels and puppies on it sitting by a stream with an angel. Anna always wanted a puppy. Her name was in pretty cursive, and her birthday had a heart around it. Anna would have loved it. Momma said there was a poem by a man on her tombstone too:

" _It was many and many a year ago,_

_In a kingdom by the sea,_

_That a maiden there lived whom you may know_

_By the name of Annabel Lee;_

_And this maiden she lived with no other thought_

_Than to love and be loved by me._

_I was a child and she was a child,_

_In this kingdom by the sea,_

_But we loved with a love that was more than love—_

_I and my Annabel Lee—_

_With a love that the wingèd seraphs of Heaven_

_Coveted her and me._

_And this was the reason that, long ago,_

_In this kingdom by the sea,_

_A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling_

_My beautiful Annabel Lee;_

_So that her highborn kinsmen came_

_And bore her away from me,_

_To shut her up in a sepulchre_

_In this kingdom by the sea._

_The angels, not half so happy in Heaven,_

_Went envying her and me—_

_Yes!—that was the reason (as all men know,_

_In this kingdom by the sea)_

_That the wind came out of the cloud by night,_

_Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee._

_But our love it was stronger by far than the love_

_Of those who were older than we—_

_Of many far wiser than we—_

_And neither the angels in Heaven above_

_Nor the demons down under the sea_

_Can ever dissever my soul from the soul_

_Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;_

_For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams_

_Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;_

_And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes_

_Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;_

_And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side_

_Of my darling—my darling—my life and my bride,_

_In her sepulchre there by the sea—_

_In her tomb by the sounding sea."_

Soon, sad music began to play. Edgar could hear Anna's box going down and then thudding softly on dirt. Then he heard people burying her; he hated that sound. That sound would stay with him for forever. He cried harder with momma when he heard that awful sound. Then it was over. People came by and talked to Edgar and his momma before they left. Only two others were there that Edgar could hear: daddy and Uncle Chris.

"Hey, Edgar," daddy said, hugging him. Chris hugged him too, but he shoved him away. He hated them. "Hello, Hadley," daddy said.

"Tommy," momma said. "I would say it's good seeing you, but I can't," she handed them paper. He could hear it change hands. "Divorce papers. You should sign them already. I've been sending them to your house for days."

"What the...full custody?"

"Hadley," Uncle Chris pleaded. "You don't have to do this."

"This is your fault. Your recklessness lost me my baby. You already took my husband before that. Was that not good enough?"

"You have no right," daddy's voice made Edgar scared. He clutched onto momma's skirt and hid his face in it.

"Please, I have more right than you do. I've already got a lawyer. Catie. Talk to her."

"Edgar is my son too!"

"No!" Edgar screamed, looking at where Uncle Chris' voice came from earlier. He stepped in front of his momma, but he pressed his back into her. "Go away, meanie! You killed Sissy, and you made it dark!" he screamed, tears rolling down his cheeks. He slapped his daddy's hands away when he felt it touch him. "I hate you! You left momma, and make her cry! I wanna stay with her! Not you!"

Edgar felt himself being lifted and pressed into a squishy chest. It was momma. She had that smell of dough and perfume. Edgar held onto his momma for dear life. She was his only family left. He felt her walking away, and he could hear her sobbing. Edgar made her hold him all the way to Nanen and Poppa's house. They were going to stay there for a few nights. He wouldn't leave his momma's side for almost anything. He even made her hold his hand while he was in the bathtub. Edgar needed something real to hold on to. He didn't want momma to be sad or all alone either.

When she thought he wasn't listening, Edgar heard momma talking on the phone. She sounded really upset. She was talking to Uncle Chris. Anger rose in the little six-year-old's chest. "Hadley, are you and Edgar all right?"

"No, Chris, I'm not," she snapped. "When will you stop torturing me? What did I ever do to you? I never deserved any of this. Edgar and Anna never deserved any of this. You both are selfish bastards and you deserve each other. Just leave us alone," she her voice quivered. She was about to cry.

"I'm sorry I hurt you," he whispered.

"That doesn't take it away, Chris. Your apology is not accepted. Now leave me alone," she snarled. "Tell your boyfriend he owes me those divorce papers. Even if he tried, he can't come back. I'm done," she slammed the phone down. Edgar ran inside and his momma caught him.

"I love you, momma."

"Oh baby...I love you too. You're my entire life."


	7. Chapter 7

Hadley curled up further under her blankets, not wanting to see or feel or even think about having the sunlight on her skin. Her world was a desolate, bleak desert, and it was completely dark and void of life. She wanted to be dead, but she had to live for Edgar. He was the only reason she was getting up out of bed or even breathing anymore. Today, he went back to school. Hadley already arranged for her mom to pick him up and drop him off at the front door that she left unlocked. She didn't want him to see her like this, so perhaps the blindness was a kind of blessing. He wouldn't have to see his mother waste away into nothing.

Hadley sighed and looked at the clock on her bedside table. He would be home soon. She needed to wash up. Hadley walked down the hall to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She lost nearly 50 pounds in the past two weeks; she looked like a skeleton covered in pale, sickly skin. The tissue around her eyes was puffy and bruised looking, and her lips were bloody from constantly chewing on them in sorrowful anxiety. Her hair was long and stringy and had split ends. If her sister ever saw it, she'd go absolutely ballistic. Hadley turned away from the mirror and undressed before getting in the shower.

The water was scalding in a good kind of way. It was like Hadley was trying to punish herself...burn away the pain and life from her eyes for not protecting her baby girl from what happened to her. Hadley washed the tangles from her hair, and she scrubbed until all of her scabs and physical wounds were reopened. When she finished, she lay in the bottom of the shower and let the water pelt her skin. She nearly fell asleep until she heard footsteps walking up the stairs and someone knocking on the door.

"Momma," Edgar called. "Momma is you in there? I'm home!"

"Yeah, honey," Hadley called. "I'll be out in a minute. Go ahead and unload in the kitchen. I'll make a snack. Don't forget your Braille teacher is coming in an hour. You need to review your alphabet."

"'Kay."

Hadley shut off the water and stood up slowly, wrapping a towel around herself as she stepped out. The room was surrounded in wispy steam that clung to the mirror. What the- Hadley stared in frozen terror at the mirror where a large handprint and armprint were. Beside it was a message. It sent chills up her spine as she looked closer to decipher it. It was...backwards:

"yeldaH,

.gnimoc era stuarK ehT .pu miA"

Hadley walked up and used another towel to wipe it all away. She needed to get her pills anyway. As the steam cleared, she looked behind her and saw a man staring at her with wide, scared eyes. Gasping, she turned to face her attacker, but no one was there but her and the steam. Hadley looked back at the mirror. No one was there. Hadley opened her pill box filled with new anti-depression and anti-psychotics and tossed them back with a glass of water. She put on her robe and ran out of the bathroom to her room. Hadley nearly screamed when she saw the portrait of Freddie; that's...that's who she saw in the bathroom. How the hell was that even possible?!

She pulled out her phone and called her psychologist. "Dr. Echelo? It's Hadley Hiddlest...I mean...Hadley Mercutio. I think my medication is making me see things. Please call me back."

When she got off the phone, Hadley got dressed and ran downstairs to see her son. He was sitting at the table with his homework spread out. His sunglasses were off, his walking cane was folded up on the floor, and his big blue eyes were looking in her direction. Hadley walked into the kitchen with a fake smile on her face. She needed to be brave for Edgar...even if he couldn't see her anymore. "Hey baby, what do you think of...candied apples for a snack and chicken tacos for dinner?" she asked as she starting pulling things from her cabinets.

"Yeah," he said as if he were distracted.

Hadley walked over and saw him drawing. She knelt down, wrapping her arms around him and kissing his now short, choppy hair. They cut it away for his surgery. "What are you drawing, kiddo?"

"The man in our house."

Hadley froze. "What do you mean, baby?" she asked, laughing nervously. "We don't have a man in our house."

"Yeah-huh, momma. He was in the bathroom with out. See? I drawed it," he said, showing her his drawing proudly puffing out his little chest as he pushed it into her hand.

He used hard marks to know where to draw; his fingers were covered in pencil smudges. Hadley looked at the picture and tensed. She was looking at a mirror in the picture, and a stick man was right behind her in a towel. There was the same writing on the mirror in the picture as upstairs. "W-Who is that, baby?"

"The man in the picture. He came with us when we took the picture here. He visited me at the hospital too. He said he'd take care of Annabelle for u, so you don't have to worry as much now, Momma."

Hadley blanched. She stood slowly and shakily went to work on the snacks, nearly burning off her fingers in the process. It had to be the pain medication for his surgery; he couldn't really think that Freddie Page was haunting their house…right? Hadley took a few deep breaths and then started making dinner and snacks. Now she had the feeling she was being watched from every friggin' corner of the house. The doorbell rang, and it almost made Hadley jump out of her skin. She was going absolutely insane; of course Freddie Page wasn't haunting the house. He was dead. She went to the door...oh thank God. It was the Braille teacher.


	8. Chapter 8

The room was quiet considering where they were. Hadley sat at a table with her lawyer sister, Catie Mercutio, which is pronounced like the animal, she always demanded when people mispronounced it. The conference room had bland beige walls with paintings of fields and waterfalls. It reminded Hadley of a doctor's office or maybe a waiting room. There were fake potted plants in every corner and a fake flower arrangement in the center of the table. Was everything in there supposed to remind people of misery? That's what it was doing for her. They were there to negotiate what she and Tommy would each be taking in the divorce. Then they'd discuss a court hearing date to argue for Hadley's full custody. She bit her lip as they waited for Tommy and his lawyer to show up.

Catie put a hand on her arm reassuringly. "Hey, everything will be fine," she offered. "You look good with curls. I think I did good…considering what it looked like before, I think I Super Wonder Fuckin'-Fantastic Woman."

Hadley deadpanned. "Oh, thanks."

"Oh, that's them. Come in," she called, sifting through her files, trying to look busy. Nice job Catie. If anything, you always were one of the best liars in law school.

Hadley watched with mourning eyes as Tommy walked into the room after an elderly female lawyer with a hawkish nose. After him, Chris walked in and shut the door quietly. Hadley closed her eyes and felt tears pooling in her eyes. She thought she was done with tears…thought her body had run out of them. She felt Catie squeeze her hand. Hadley opened her eyes and saw Tommy looking at her. He looked like he'd seen a ghost. Hadley knew she looked pretty awful. Her doctor said she was borderline anorexic, and if she didn't start gaining weight, they'd have to put her in the hospital. Catie cleared her throat. "I believe this meeting is between our clients, not our clients and a lover."

Thank you, Catie. May God bless you and your sailor's mouth. Chris agreed to leave, looking at Hadley with an apologetic look. Hadley pulled her sweater closer to her skin. The old woman sat straight and poured herself a glass of water. "Are we ready to begin?" she asked with a thick Scottish accent.

Catie smirked. "Sure. Here are...some papers for you to read," she said, passing a huge stack of papers over to the lawyer. "And here...is a watered down version for Mr. Hiddleston," she said with bite. Catie was itching for a fight with Tommy ever since he left Hadley. After the wreck, she nearly clocked him for even showing up to the funeral. The police officers Hadley worked with had to keep an eye on her.

"We don't need lip, Ms. Mercutio," the old woman snapped. "Now, see this, Mr. Hiddleston, she's already signed this document," she offered, tutoring him. "We're going to go through this and make sure there are no surprises. We brought papers too," she explained, handing a file to Catie.

Catie began scanning and scowled. "You've made agreement papers too. Well, we can just make a new one off of these," she said, pulling out a notepad and preparing.

"How much do you two each make in a year?" the old woman inquired.

"$18,100...Chris makes $23,000."

"What the hell do you two do?" Catie barked out a laugh. "Work at McDonalds?"

"Catie!" Hadley said quickly. "That was uncalled for," she hissed.

"I'm a barista at Starbucks," Tommy said quietly. "Chris is an aspiring artist."

"I make $130,330…I'm a medical examiner."

"Who will stay in the house?" Tommy's lawyer inquired, pursing her lips at Hadley like she was sick just looking at her.

"Hadley has already vacated," Catie said, eyeing the woman dangerously. "And since Hadley now has no one to help, Tommy and Chris will be paying all the joint bills left over from the marriage."

The woman looked to Tommy. He thought on it before looking up at Hadley; she quickly averted her eyes. She was still so in love with those big blue eyes. He agreed to it. Thank God Almighty. This back and forth went on for several hours without much dispute. When Hadley left, she took everything she thought she needed or wanted from that memory-filled house. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she signed the line Catie showed her. Her marriage was practically over. She was signing ten years of her life away. A sob ripped out of her chest, and Catie put her arms around her. She gave her a tissue and asked if she needed a minute, but Hadley refused. This...this needed to be done. She needed to get home and take care of Edgar.

"Now, concerning your son," the woman stated. "I see Mrs. Hiddleston has applied for sole custody. We will be refuting that in a court hearing soon."

"Are you sure, Tommy?" Catie asked. "She's willing to pay all the expenses. You just have to pay $200 a month for child support."

For a moment, he seemed to actually be considering it. "What about seeing them?" he asked his lawyer quietly.

"Mrs. Hiddleston will not allow any sort of contact between you and your son, Mr. Hiddleston."

"Are you trying to hurt me, Hadley?" Tommy asked, glaring at her as puffing out through his nose like he always did when he got upset. "He's my son too, you know! You can't keep him away from me!"

"Mr. Hiddleston."

"You better watch what you say to my sister, Tommy. If I hear anything that sounds like a threat, I'll kick your ass!"

"Ms. Mercutio!"

"Edgar has already said what he thinks on the matter, Tommy. I personally think you're a threat to his safety. You and your boyfriend got Anna killed after all."

Tommy gaped at her before standing and leaving. His lawyer scowled before following him. "We will see you both in court. I sincerely hope you're prepared for what we have for you."


	9. Chapter 9

Hadley was surrounded by stars and planes against a backdrop of explosions and fire and smoke. All around her planes were falling in endless tumults until they exploded against the unforgiving Earth. They hit the ground with a ghastly wining sound; she could hear a man swearing and screaming. It sounded grainy like she was hearing it over an old electronic speaker. She heard someone respond; it sounded like the man voice was coming from her. The bodies of her comrades, her brothers-in-arms, her teammates, her friends were all falling as if they never stood a chance. Wait…she didn't know these people, did she? One of the pilots flying beside her was thrown back as a shell hit him. Sweaty palms wiped stinging tears from her eyes; they were such a pretty color of blue.

"Page, we have a situ-"

"Albert? Albert?! Dammit! We've lost Cunningham."

Freddie Page's unit was closest to enemy fire, or at least it always seemed to be. They always lost so many boys in the air. They had taken an opening during a lull in the shells; his team had barely missed being obliterated completely. They were currently being obliterated. Damn Krauts. Inky black hair was plastered against his skull. His mind flew through dozens of ways to get through the night. His life no longer mattered, but if he was going to be a statistic then by God he was going to be hell for those Krauts to take down. They were going to pay for taking his friend's lives even if they were only under orders as much as he was. He would have no trouble killing any of them. In fact, he'd enjoy it. Have a pint on Freddie boys, he just took out a whole fucking platoon!

"Let's give these bastards a lesson, eh, Johnny!" he snarled into his mic.

"You got it Freddie! These Krauts need a few bullets shoved up the arse."

Adrenaline rushed through his veins; he felt exuberant. If he wasn't able to be seen or heard, he'd be giggling like a raving madman. Maybe he was mad; he wouldn't be all that surprised. He fired at several planes as he shot up, taking out at least two of those damn Krauts as he turned tail. Every noise and distraction fell to the background of his mind. He fought with a cold intensity brought by many battles.

"Page, get out of there. Fall back! Fall back!"

"Roger that, Sir. Johnny. Hey, Johnny, you hear that order?"

"Roger that."

As they began their flight back to base, Freddie started counting how many men they lost. They lost far too many. As he scanned the numbers, he thought of his friends' families. Freddie felt responsible for every bloody death they received. Wait. One of the planes wasn't familiar. Shit! It was an enemy plane. Dammit, he wasn't paying attention. "Enemy plane! Enemy plane! Aim up, dammit. Kill the little bastard!"

The Kraut dove once they began firing on the invader. By the time they hit it, seven more pilots had lost their lives. Now it seemed the Krauts would be having pints on that one. Damn! How could Freddie be so fucking stupid? "Page. You still alive?" His commanding officer asked.

"Yeah...I'm here."

"Good. You're clear for landing."

"Roger that. Beginning descent."

* * *

Hadley gasped as she startled awake in her Queen sized bed. She sat up and rubbed her eyes before she looked in front of her at that portrait. She had another dream about Freddie Page; why would she focus on that of all things? Her mind must have been so stressed, she surmised, that it focused on the picture she saw every day. It was a peaceful thing she'd seen every day in her hectic life. Hadley ran a hand through her messy hair and sighed shakily, looking at the clock beside her. It was two in the morning. Hadley decided she would have to see her doctor about another sedative. The one she was taking wasn't nearly strong enough.

"Momma?" Edgar asked as he shifted, only half awake. He was barely visible under the gargantuan blankets. If Hadley wasn't so terrified, she would think it was cute.

"Yes, baby?"

"You okay? I heard you sayin' something."

"I'm fine, baby," Hadley said, laying back down and wrapping her arm around him to snuggle up close. "I'm okay. Just go back to sleep."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, baby. I'm sure," she said, petting his head gently.

"Love you."

"Love you too."


	10. Chapter 10

Hadley was in the courthouse halls waiting for Edgar to finish talking to the judge. She was there alone...without Catie...without anyone for that matter. The custody hearing would start ten minutes after the judge finished talking to Edgar. She just hoped he was okay being in there all by himself. Hadley turned when she heard a familiar voice: Tommy. He was walking towards her with Chris, and they were smiling at each other. How could they smile? Anna was gone, Tommy's marriage was over, and Edgar...were they that much of a burden to Tommy? Their smiles faded when they saw her standing by the door in her black dress. All she wore anymore was black, black, and more black.

"Hello, Hadley," Tommy said, offering a smile. "Is Edgar in with the judge?"

"Yes," she said quietly.

"We can end this now, Hadley. We can have joint custody and forget this-"

"No," Hadley mumbled.

Tommy sighed irritatedly. "Edgar is my son too, you know."

"No. It's that simple. Just no."

"Simple?" Chris spoke up. "None of this is simple, Hadley. Tommy is in a lot of pain."

"He'll get over it," she said. "He has you, remember? That's what started all of this was you," she snarled, hatred for Chris pulsing in her eyes. He was once one of her best friends; he was her Judas Iscariot.

"What makes you so damn sure you'll win, anyway?" Chris remarked.

"Judge Kloft's reputation precedes him," she said quietly.

They silently digested what that meant for them. "How could you do this to him?" Chris asked.

"The same way you two could fuck each other senseless behind my back. I'm not concerned about either of your feelings anymore. I care more about what's best for my son."

"No," Tommy said weakly. "You only care about revenge. If you cared at all about our son, you wouldn't be trying to take him away."

"I don't want to plan another funeral, Tommy. If I lose him…it will be the death of me. Besides, Edgar has already told you what he thinks."

"He's six!"

"He has the right to deny you of seeing him. If that's what it takes to help him heal, you should be willing to do this," she said as the door opened.

Edgar was led out by the judge with tears in his eyes. "M-Momma?"

"Hey, hey," Hadley got on her knees and hugged him. "What's the matter, baby?"

"I-I wanna stay with you. I'm scared."

"Okay, sweetie. You're okay," she cooed, picking him up and letting him wipe his eyes and nose into her shoulder. "Nanen is going to take you to feed the cows while mommy does some work."

"Hey, buddy," Tommy said, ruffling Edgar's short hair. "How are you?"

Edgar hid in his mother's neck. Tommy looked devastated, but Chris was there to comfort him. Who did Hadley have? All she had left now was Edgar. Couldn't they see that? She couldn't risk Tommy killing her baby boy after his recklessness already killed her little girl. Hadley rubbed Edgar's back and kissed his cheek. "Hey, say hi to your daddy, will you? For me?"

"I'm fine. I don't like you," he grumbled. Hadley sighed heavily and carried him away before she had to get to court.

* * *

The courtroom was the same one where they had begun to settle all the other divorce proceedings nearly a week prior. Catie squeezed Hadley's arm when they were permitted to sit and the case number was called. Judge Kloft was a large Indian man with a scarred up face and gentle baritone voice. He cleared his throat as he sifted through the file he had brought in tucked up under his big arms. "This is a hearing to determine final custody of one Edgar Allen Hiddleston. Two petitions are before the court: one to grant custody to Hadley Mercutio and one from Tommy Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth. Which side would like to present their case first?"

"We've prepared a concise argument," Tommy's attorney said as she stood.

"Proceed."

The woman took three folders from her briefcase and gave one to the judge and the other to Catie. "Sir, I'd like to submit these typed manuscripts of sessions between Ms. Mercutio and one Dr. Echol." Hadley paled. Could they do that? That was her therapist; that wasn't right. Catie explained that they subpoenaed the good doctor. She said that the case was essentially in their favor now. "It says that Ms. Mercutio has symptoms of suicidal ideation and potential for mental disease. She is unable to care for this child and-"

"Objection! That is a matter of opinion!"

"Omit that statement," the judge boomed.

"Nothing further."

Catie stood and straightened her suit. "Sir, these are not the notes of a mental patient, but of a grieving mother. My client lost her husband because of adulterous sodomy."

"Objection!"

"Ms. Mercu-"

"Oh, please. What else would it be?" Catie asked albeit snarkily. Hadley tensed. Good grief, one day she;d get herself into a lot of trouble with that mouth.

The judge paused. "I'll allow it."

"After this, my client allowed visits. As you can see here from hers and Mr. Hiddleston's schedules. She let them take her two children to a zoo. No harm there, right? Except Mr. Hiddleston and Mr. Hemsworth had a late night of…romantic encounters."

"Objection. What is the relevance?"

"It proves the defendant cares more about his own desires than his children."

The judge frowned and looked at the file again, rubbing his marred chin. "I'll allow it."

"Thank you, Sir. As I was saying, after this long night, it was obvious both males would be tired. They took the children anyway, and as a result Mr. Hemsworth dozed off behind the wheel. He killed Annabelle Lee Hiddleston and permanently blinded Edgar Allen Hiddleston."

The judge looked through the file and frowned. "Is this true?"

Tommy's attorney paused. "It is, Your Honor."

The hearing lasted for several more hours until the judge decided to continue later with another hearing. Hadley's heart sank; she was fighting a losing battle. From the smiles of Tommy and his attorney and Catie's pitiful smile, Hadley knew. She watched as Catie shook the other woman's hand, and then Tommy walked over, hand outstretched with a look of pity in his eyes.

"Get lost, Tommy," Catie snapped. "Before I slap a fucking harassment charge on your ass."

When he left, Hadley let Catie help her up. "Thank you," she offered softly as tears pooled in her eyes. "For trying to help me win."

"Come on. It ain't over yet."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who does Catie remind you of?   
> She reminds me of Deb from the TV show DEXTER.


	11. Chapter 11

Tommy smiled when he found Chris standing in the backyard smoking a cigarette. "I've been waiting for you," he said, not looking back at him.

"Yeah?"

"I'm taking you out tonight. It's a celebration because I know you'll win the case. And since we're celebrating, I thought we could splurge a little."

Tommy could only stare as Chris poured a white powder into a neat little line on his bare inner thigh since he was clad in only boxers. Tommy had done a few drugs back in college when he was exploring his horizons. He had a lot of fond memories of those days. Hell, he even got Hadley the good girl to join in once. Today was, as Chris said, a day for celebration; he could splurge and feel young again just for one night, right? Tommy practically sauntered over and knelt over Chris, taking a deep breath in. He felt like the insides of his nostrils and throat were being cut with ground glass. He coughed and spat a little but as he came up.

Chris dragged him to his brother's house for a little party after that. It wasn't too far away, just five or six miles. Before he knew it, Tommy was crammed in a room with twenty people standing and dancing around. Then suddenly Chris was completely wrapped around him. Before he could greet his love, he was dragged up into a kiss by one of Chris' thick fingers. It tasted like the chalk of pill residue and red wine. Tommy groaned into it erotically. All of it still felt so new and fantastic. Chris grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him upstairs to the guest bedroom that was currently empty. It smelled like sex.

The room was gold and purple, and it made Tommy feel like he was in some kind of weird fairy-esque fantasy as Chris hefted him up and pinned him to the wall, forcing him to wrap his legs around his hips. Tommy felt Chris' cock strain against his own and let out a long, low moan. Chris returned it by humming low and deep in his chest. Tommy swore he felt it along the length of every one of his fucking nerves. He experimentally shifted to get more friction against his cock until he found a nice rhythm to follow.

"Do you like humping my leg, honey?" Hands were squeezing his ass, and Tommy didn't know what to do with himself. "I'm gonna get you nice and ready to take all of this," Chris said, pulling Tommy's hand to his cock.

"Now, baby, now."

And suddenly they were naked, stretched out on a quilted bed…definitely not the most romantic spot Tommy wagered. There was a single, warm wet finger circling Tommy's sensitive hole. He felt himself shudder and his hole twitch toward that digit as every last inch of him demanded to be filled to the brim. Soon, Chris had two fingers up Tommy's ass. They stretched and pulled and burned and occasionally grazed something deep inside him. When they did, Tommy choked on the air. Meanwhile, all Tommy could look at was Chris' cock. It was thick and long and flushing pink. It stood out prominently from between the ridges of his hips.

Tommy groaned. "Chris," he whined. "Come on, I'm ready. I want your cock so damn bad."

The next thing Tommy knew was that the head of his cock was slowly sliding in, and he swore he could feel his eyes roll back in his skull. His body was dripping with sweat as it shook, beyond his control. His hole involuntarily clenched around the length inside him, and Chris howled. He was being kissed within an inch of his life, feeling like he was being devoured. Maybe he was being devoured; God he forgot how great it was to get high and have sex. There was blood and saliva dripping from his lips, and it all tasted so good. Tommy chanted out a series of sounds with no definition and precise meaning as Chris angled himself to hit that one meaningful spot within Tommy. And suddenly Tommy's entire universe consisted of a fat cock fucking him open.

When he came, his whole body shook and spasmed, and he felt Chris' cock pulsing as his insides were flooded with hot seed. "Mine!" he snarled into Tommy's neck. He clawed into Tommy's hips, and there would no doubt be bruises there in the morning. Good. He'd enjoy the limp he received after a thorough fuck; he always did. Tommy was too sleepy to think up a retort to the overly possessive "mine" thing. That was just so typical of Chris; he hardly even noticed it anymore. The drugs and alcohol helped that one along. Tommy honestly couldn't say he minded; score one for the drugs!

He woke up several hours later in a cold sweat though. They were back at home, spooning in bed naked. He had dreamt of Freddie Page. It was a nightmare. He felt so much anger and rage, and then there was fear there too. Tommy couldn't explain why, but he suddenly felt quite afraid. Shuddering, he curled into his lover's overly-heated body and blocked out the thoughts, returning to a thankfully dreamless sleep. Maybe that extra swig of scotch that was beside the bed helped matters a bit though.


	12. Chapter 12

**Alone.** That's all Hadley was in her house. She was alone with nothing but her thoughts and the son she didn't deserve. Even that would be taken from her soon...like everything else she has ever loved. She was almost scared sometimes to love Edgar or anyone else for fear they would be the next victims to her tragic curse. She sat on the couch, curled up in the corner, looking at photos of the "good" times before all this. Memories...that's all they were. Captured moments saved in her mind, tucked away only to spring out at moments when she felt alone and beyond repair. Moments like now. She traced the photo of her and Tommy...she had loved that wedding gown. She couldn't help but smile even as tears silently streamed down her face because she still loved him.

Suddenly, someone was at the door. She went to it. Tommy. He was there to have a supervised visit with Edgar. Hadley invites him in and goes to get her pouting son. He's been huffing in his room all morning since Hadley told him the news. She encouraged him and eventually got him out the door with the kind woman from social services. Her name was Marigold. Hadley and Tommy just stood there as if that painful, awkward silence was actually nice to endure. In all actuality, Hadley would rather be stabbed to death with needles.

"It's been quite a while since you knocked on my door," Hadley said with a sad smile. "Did you need something else?"

Suddenly, she felt warm hands cup her face. Her brow creased in confusion, and she felt Tommy's lips on hers. She gasped and froze, eyes wide in surprise and hope. Before she could relish it, Tommy let his hand slip from Hadley's face and pulled away from her. He wiped away the tears she didn't seem to realize were rolling down her cheeks.

"I've missed you," she whimpered.

"I know."

"I've been longing for you…every day I sit here and think of when we were…" she looked up and smiled at Tommy, eyes watery with shed and unshed tears. "Do you remember our first kiss?"

Tommy smiled nostalgically and nodded. He might as well have been thinking about the first time he saw the "Wizard of Oz."

"I was so nervous," Hadley continued. "I had no idea what I was doing, or if I was even doing it right. But you were so patient, so gentle. You guided me and let me explore…I was so thankful that I swore never to kiss anyone like that again."

Tommy chuckled.

"I love you," Hadley whimpered. "I love you, and being away from you has caused me nothing but pain, and yet you walk around as if my absence has no effect whatsoever."

"Hadley-"

"Say it, please," she begged. She looked up into his eyes for any sign of lingering affection. "Tell me you love me. Say it like you used to…when we were in love. When you would hold me and tell me that nothing in the universe could destroy what we were."

Tommy sighed and looked down.

"You said at our wedding that I was your Queen, and that what the others thought didn't matter so long as we were together. You said: 'what God bound, no one could tear asunder'. Do you not remember, Tommy?" she asked desperately. "Please say something...anything."

"Hadley-"

"Tell me you love me, please," she was begging. She was so desperate to hear it, even if it was a lie. She would take anything. "Tell me all of this was worth it. That I meant something to you."

"You still do, Hadley."

"Then say it." Hadley brought her face up and kissed Tommy over and over, needing his affection. She needed something…anything. "Please," she whimpered. "Tell me you love me."

Tommy gently gripped Hadley's bone-thin wrists, slowly pulling them from him and leaning away from her kisses. He stared at her. "Hadley, I care for you. Things have changed Hadley, you know that."

Hadley sobbed and finally smiled in defeat, his words hitting like a knife to the heart. "All those things we swore to one another," she whispered. "All those things we said…nothing but lies and empty promises."

"You have to understand. Things have changed. Can you understand that?"

She nodded, utterly deflated. "Yes."

He sighed. "Please, don't do this to me, Hadley."

She smiled, the gesture completely fake and void of happiness. "I know, I know."

Tommy smiled. "There you go. There's that old smile. I'll bring him back in time for bed."

Her smile never wavered. "I know you will."

Tommy placed a platonic kiss on Hadley's forehead and made his way to the door. He looked to Hadley and smiled before leaving. And there she was...just as she started. **Alone.** She couldn't take it anymore. How much longer would the loss of her husband and daughter hurt? How much longer would she be able to hold her son in her arms? In that moment, she decided she didn't want to stay to find out. It all hurt too much. She was tired of the pain.

Hadley stood and went to the notepad with all her addresses and contacts on it. She carefully tore a page out and sat to write. She used a blue pen. Blue was Anna's favorite color. Maybe it was fate. She would be with Anna after this. Smiling sadly, she began to write:

_My dearest Tommy,_

_Choosing to write this to you was an easy decision. It's because I care for you more than I have ever cared for anything except our two gorgeous children. I'm sure you can assume what this letter is for, and please do not try to save me. Maybe I'm already dead. Don't be sad for me, my love. I have been dead for months. I've been dead ever since I made that call. There was nothing you could have done. Mourn for me if you must but do so briefly for me...for Edgar. Your face is too handsome to be marred by tears and sadness. I wish I could have kissed you...and made love to you one last time, but I know it would have hurt too much. I'm a sadist in that way I suppose. I wouldn't be able to go through with this if I saw you again. I'm so sorry I'm doing this to you...and to Edgar and my family. I promise it will be my last mistake I ever make. You are a lovely man and in another life, perhaps we would have lived to the end of our days together. It's not this life. Please tell Edgar I know he will do many great things. He will make a young girl very happy; tell him to always remember that Anna and I are looking out for him. I'm scared, Tommy. I love you so, so much._

_-Your Once and Nevermore Darling_

Hadley signed the letter and smiled. "It will all be over soon. I'm coming Anna-Banana."

She stood and made her way to the bedroom where she kissed the note and placed it on the pillow with her wedding and engagement rings. They were so easy to take off since she'd lost so much weight. Afterwards, she went back to the kitchen and retrieved a serrated knife before drawing a hot bath. She got into her wedding gown and smiled as she slid into the bath, knife in hand. She felt like she did on her wedding day: beautiful. Suddenly, a billowing column steam collected and became Freddie Page. It didn't really matter now though.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Something I should have done long ago," she responded, smiling. Without a second thought, she pressed the knife to her wrist and pulled. She hissed when she felt the sting. Then another sting. One for each arm. Then blood came, quickly forming a small puddle on her wrist before rolling over in droplets into the water.

"What do you think you're doing?!" she heard Freddie yell. Then he vanished.

Hadley let her arms fall to her sides, the blood flowing into the pinking water. It wasn't long before black dots began to cloud her vision. Suddenly there was a loud thud. Someone was inside the house. "Hadley? Hadley?! Hadley, where are you?"

Tommy's voice. No...no...no! She tried to reach for the knife again, but she didn't have the ability to grab it. Her fingers were failing her even now. Then she saw Tommy, and she froze. There he stood, eyes wide in horror as Hadley bled out before him. She thought she heard someone calling 911. Tommy rushed to Hadley, picking her up and holding her to him, tears falling onto her face. "Hadley, you idiot, what have you done to yourself?"

"I know," she said, barely audible. "I'm an idiot. I'm an idiot." She closed her eyes, the darkness flowing over her before she felt Tommy shake her, jostling her awake for a moment more.

"Stay with me, okay?" he put her into someone else's arms. They were paramedics. Please, God, no. Let me die. "We'll meet you at the hospital."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Stay with us, Ms. Mercutio. We're taking you to the hospital."

Her vision was going. The darkness felt so good...so inviting. This was it. She felt herself escaping the pain. "I love you…I love you…"


	13. Chapter 13

The lights had gone out on the block…again. This was the fourth time where just past midnight the power on the entire block just cut off. Wait...no it wasn't. Since when did Hadley's power ever cut off? Where was she? Hadley let out a frustrated sigh as she stood up to turn on the gas heater. Just as she lit a candle, she heard purposeful steps coming up behind her. Suddenly, a strong presence grabbed her and pulled her into the bedroom, nearly making her drop the lit candle. It would have sent the entire house up in flames. The door swung closed immediately behind her and her attacker. It was none other than her very own Freddie Page. Was she...was Hadley dreaming again?

He snickered, but soon it turned into a full blown, gut-filled laugh.

"You scared me to death, Freddie!"

"Oh Hester, you…you should've seen your face," he said, giggling as he let go and took a step back, putting his hands into his pant pockets. "Bloody brilliant I tell you."

"You had no right to do that! I could have hit you!" she snapped at him in a matronly way.

Freddie laughed even harder at that comment than the whole face debacle. "Freddie, I'm being ser-" he stopped her with a finger on her lips, closing the little gap between them. Suddenly his eyes held not only mirth but mischief and hunger as well. Oh dear…

Her breathing softened, and soon she relaxed into his touch as she wrapped an arm around his waist, leaning into him to meet his lips. The kiss was gentle and slow but deep as he sucked on her bottom lip. Suddenly, Freddie pulled her closer and she could feel his erection pressing against her hip. Confident hands ran over her breasts, teasing her nipples until they ached. Oh, William could never do this to her. But who was William? Freddie took his time to undo her dress and lifted her breasts from her bra. She pushed her chest forward, and he obliged by ducking his head and sucking her breasts until she moaned and grabbed the belt looped in his tailored pants.

"Mmm...Hester, you're so forward."

"Is it too much, darling?"

"It's wonderful," he purred as he took a step back to give her room to undo the belt.

As she pushed the clothing down, his cock sprang forward. Her hands ran up and down its length, enjoying the hard heat modestly, if that was even possible. Freddie grunted and grabbed the back of her neck, pulling her into another passionate kiss and walked them back to the bed where he pushed her down onto it. As he stood in between her parted legs, his fingers slid into her as his thumb rubbed her clit. With eyes closed, she bucked her hips up to meet his sudden thrust with his fingers; she let out another moan as it hit her in just the right spot.

Then Freddie pushed her onto her back; his cock slid along her entrance, causing her to whimper in frustration. He wasted no time as he thrust into her, filling her whole. "Freddie," she moaned.

"Tell me...what you want."

"H-Harder," she breathed in between thrusts as he made love to her hard and deep. The pressure in her built, drowning out everything else and with a sharp cry; her climax exploded through her. The tremor drew forth his own climax as hot seed pumped into her, both of them coming undone as they moved in rhythm.

She sobbed out softly as he withdrew from her, both of them shuddering and gasping for air. Freddie lay on his back, away from her until she sidled up to him and pawed. He did not embrace her back though. Emotion flooded through her, but he couldn't give her what she needed. She wanted him though. That was enough.

* * *

Hadley awoke with a gasp. Black dots were blotting out some of her vision as she stared at fluorescent lights. Why did her chest hurt so badly? Looking down, she saw the skin of her chest was burned and bruised. Her throat hurt horribly from the intubation tube stuck down her throat. The doctor beside her was putting away paddles as a nurse pulled out the tube and put an oxygen mask on her. They had tubes running out of her arms, and they were sewing up the ugly gashes in her forearms. Wires were stuck all over her skin and head.

Tears slowly slid out of Hadley's eyes. She'd been so close! Now she would have to endure the looks...the court hearings...the questions…the stigma. The nurses seemed to notice and thought she was in pain because they decided then was the time to give her a sedative and something for the slight sting in her arms the lidocaine didn't cover. Maybe she could pretend she was dead for a little while. After all, sleep was just death without the commitment. As her eyes slid shut, Hadley thought she could hear Annabelle calling her name.


	14. Chapter 14

Catie stretched as she made her way to a nice shady area, cringing at how much she was sweating. She just finished all of her hearings and meetings for the day. It was time for her to wind down. She pulled out her phone and grimaced; it was that little mother fucker, Tommy. He left 25 texts and 17 missed calls. She considered not answering or even dignifying the little fucker's existence, but she knew Hadley would want her to treat Tommy with kindness. Yeah, she'd give him kindness; she'd kill him with it. Catie scowled; Hadley really was too good for him. She unlocked her phone and looked at the latest message.

_It's Tommy. Please call me back. Urgent._

Unless he was giving up, she really didn't want to call the asshole, but the Hadley and dad voices in her head told her to be nice. With a frown Catie dialed the number and waited for him to pick up the phone. She tapped her foot slowly while listening to the phone ring. On the third ring, he actually picked up the phone. Took him long enough. "Catie...is that you?" Tommy's voice asked, sounding down and tired. Good. He deserved it.

"Who the fuck else would it be, you ass?" she snapped. "You're lucky I'm feeling gracious enough to call you. What do you want?"

"Something's happened."

Catie's eyes narrowed and her stomach sank into her shoes. "What is it?"

"Hadley's in the hospital," he breathed out shakily. "She tried to kill herself. She died for thirty seconds, but they resuscitated her."

"How?"

"Cutting."

Catie swore. She knew Hadley used to cut when she was a teen, but it was always just barely visible scratches she made with her razor or a small cooking knife. The custody battle must have sent her over the edge. She knew she shouldn't have left her alone at the house, but she hadn't given off any indication that she would do something like this. "How deep were the cuts?"

"I could see bone. As soon as we were driving off, Edgar started telling me we needed to go back. He said the man in the picture told him Hadley was trying to kill herself. I went back, just to be sure and…and sure enough, she was in her wedding dress in the bathtub."

Catie's mind was racing, and she realized she was shaking like a leaf. Someone came over and asked if she was okay, but Catie just started running to her car in the parking garage across the street. Fuck the hot valet guy. The fact that Hadley wore her wedding dress...she adored that thing ever since she first saw it. It said quite a lot that she decided to put it on when she tried to kill herself. "This is all your fault, Tommy. What hospital?"

There was silence. "S-Saint Bartholomew's. She's in the ICU."

"I'll be there in ten minutes."

"I'll be here. Edgar won't leave Hadley's side."

Fuck. She'd have to see him. "Fine. Don't screw it up." She didn't give Tommy a chance to reply before she hung up.

Minutes later, she was pulling into the hospital parking garage. She took a moment to breathe and tried to relax. She wouldn't be doing anyone favors by being worked up even though Tommy was there. Both their parents had been called. They'd be over by seven tonight to stay with Hadley. Catie slid out of the car and made her way to the ICU, spotting Chris immediately. He called her name and pulled her into his arms, giving her the tight squeeze. "You'd better get the fuck off me you asshole. This is all your fault. Next time you touch me, I'll sue for sexual harassment. Now what room is my sister in?"

He looked at her with big eyes. "R-Room 204."

"Have the doctors said anything?"

"They said she was stable, that's it."

Catie nodded and deliberately shoved past him to get to Hadley. As she walked, she remembered their childhood. Since Hadley was older, Catie always looked up to her, but that ended when she turned thirteen. They fought like cats and dogs. Now, they were like good friends more than sisters, and they liked it that way. At the room, she had to explain her relationship to Hadley to be allowed in to see her. She made sure, also, to tell the nurse that under no circumstances was the big blonde guy named Chris allowed in that room…ever. She wasted no time after that going to see Hadley, and nothing could have prepared her for seeing her.

She was so pale—more so than her normal look—the pink gone from her cheeks. Her lips were almost without color as well. She looked dead, and it absolutely terrified Catie. Edgar was tucked up under her arm. There were so many IVs sticking out. Catie tried to hide her teary eyes from the presence in the chair to her right. She couldn't have hated Tommy William Hiddleston more at that precise moment. "What did she say when you found her?"

"I love you," Tommy said shakily. "She said it over and over until she died in the hospital. When she woke up, she was crying, so they sedated her. She should wake up at any ti-"

A groan from the bed caught everyone's attention, even Edgar's. Hadley's eyebrows were knitted together as she fought to wake up. Her eyes were dull when she opened her eyes and looked around. The drugs must have been strong; Hadley usually wasn't affected this strongly by drugs. Catie tried to block her sight of Tommy, but Tommy stood and moved closer. Jackass. "H-How did I get here?"

"You died for a little while," Catie said before Tommy could. "They've got you here in the ICU. Why did you do that? You could've just lost us the custody case."

Hadley was quiet for a long moment before she turned away, her blue eyes watery with tears. They were always watery nowadays. "Because…"

"That's not good enough. What triggered it?" Catie snapped.

Hadley was quiet again for a while. Catie watched her eyes move, as if she was following the movements of something. Was it the morphine? "I-I love him," she finally said and Tommy tensed. "It's killing me. He'll take away my baby. Just like Anna."

"I did not kill Anna! I loved her too. I love my son too. How could you do this to him?!" Tommy snapped. Hadley's eyes settled on him. Her eyes were so emotionless and dead. She looked…looking at her actually kind of scared Catie.

"I can't live without him," Hadley said, hugging Edgar closer. Edgar had tears in his eyes, but they were angry and aimed at his father. He had a hand on his mother's, being careful of the IVs he occasionally bumped into.

"What if I can't either?" he asked.

"You have Chris. Edgar is all that's left of our family for me to hold onto. I'm grasping at straws here."

Before anyone said anything else, Catie stepped in. "For now, let's just try to cool down and relax. Hadley needs to recover, and then this can be dealt with. This can't happen again. Ever. Hadley, we're going to do what needs to be done to help. Alright? You are going to make every effort to be healthy for Edgar…got that? No more excuses. You have a son that needs his Mommy. Don't deprive Eddie."

"I'm sorry," Hadley said softly as tears finally leaked from her eyes. "Edgar…can you forgive mommy?"

Edgar nodded from his nest in the curve of her body.

"It's okay," Catie said, hugging her with Edgar. Tommy tried to come over, but one sharp glare from Catie kept him away. "You'll be okay."


	15. Chapter 15

"Daddy, daddy, daddy!" Annabelle's voice rang through the house, accompanied by the pitter-patter of little feet as she dashed to her father's office in their old home. She paused just long enough to reach up and-with no small degree of difficulty-push open the door wide enough for her to slip into the room. "Daddy!" she panted, running toward the desk behind which her father sat. Tommy looked up from the articles he'd been skimming, his blue eyes immediately latching onto the form of his daughter as she hurried over to him, tiny wisps of hair drifting around her face and in the air haphazardly.

"Hey, Anna Banana, are you okay?" he slid out of his chair to kneel on the floor worriedly and held out his arms to his daughter.

Anna beamed at him, the perfect picture of childhood innocence and joy. "Yes, daddy. I'm okay." Without hesitation she slipped her hands into her father's, wrapping her fingers around his thumbs and endeavored to tug him onto his feet.

"Anna," Tommy began sternly. "Mummy and I told you that you knock unless it is an emergency."

This caused Annabelle to still, and she looked at her father, and her face fell instantaneously, losing the excitement and taking on a serious frown. Her forehead wrinkled ever so slightly as she drew her eyebrows down, and then she nodded. "Yes," she finally admitted, "I'm sorry I forgot. It won't happen again," she promised earnestly. She even nodded as if convincing herself.

Tommy smiled, but he slowly turned into Freddie. Annabelle didn't seem to notice anything. "Now, what was it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Well," Anna began slowly. "I finally finished learning the steps to the waltz in dance class. It's the first dance I've learned."

"I know," he said, nodding. "You're growing into a beautiful young lady too fast," he squeezed her hands.

"I was…hoping that you would dance it with me," Annabelle finally admitted, looking up at him. "Momma said you know the steps. She said you danced it at your wedding," she added. "Please?"

Freddie smiled. Then his face morphed and he was once again the image of Tommy. Again, Anna never seemed to notice this quick transformation of persons. "Of course I'll dance."

Tommy stood, Anna's hands still clasped in his, and took a step closer to his daughter. She turned her face up, her eyes meeting his with a radiant smile that could have shamed the brightest of stars. "Go, Daddy," Anna said, "You're supposed to start."

Tommy chuckled. "Are you ready?" he asked. Annabelle nodded. Holding her hands just a bit tighter, Tommy took the first step back, toe just barely touching the floor. Anna mirrored him, stepping forward toe-first, and then bringing her right foot to her ankle where it hovered before matching Tommy as he stepped sideways. As the dance continued, the steps came faster until father and daughter were twirling through his office.

Mid-spin Tommy once again became Freddie, but her hands remained safely in his even when she faltered or hesitated or was forced to skip or double-step to make a correction. He was keeping her steady and safe. The dance was meant to end with the lady twisting into her partner's arms, but at the last second, Freddie scooped Anna up into his arms and spun, holding her to his chest. Giggling, she wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head against his shoulder.

The setting suddenly changed. They were in Hadley's current bedroom. Freddie came to a standstill and hugged Annabelle tightly, before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. She turned so she could look up at him, then reached up and kissed his cheek, arms still locked about his neck. "Thank you," she murmured, smiling sadly. She was wearing her funeral dress.

"It was my pleasure, my little Lady," he said, setting her down and bowing. Annabelle giggled and curtsied. "You are a beautiful dancer."

"But…I messed up," Annabelle admitted, her smile suddenly fading.

Freddie knelt before her and-taking both of her hands in one of his own-looked her in the eye. "Messing up doesn't matter," Freddie said reassuringly. "All that matters is how you react: whether you give up or get back on your feet. No one's perfect the first time they try something, and it's not even close to perfection the second or third time. In fact, the first time I ever attempted to dance, I tripped over my own feet and fell," he confided.

Annabelle looked at him, shock in her wide blue eyes, and her mouth was open in disbelief. "Nuh-uh."

"Never fear," Freddie said with a smirk. "Soon you will be able to do it flawlessly, and you shall be more beautiful than a butterfly."

"But...I'll never get to dance where people can see me."

"You can dance in Heaven."

Annabelle shrieked in surprise as she was lifted high in the air. Her cry turned into laughter an instant later as Freddie settled her on his shoulders, his hands holding her feet to keep her from falling. Anna leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his head.

"Are you ready?" Freddie called.

"Yes," Annabelle answered. Freddie then began to make airplane noises, nimbly leaping and spinning and dashing about until they were in the kitchen. Anna was laughing delightedly, her voice sounded like chiming bells. Setting her on the floor, Freddie offered his hand which she promptly took. Then they both looked directly at Hadley.

* * *

Hadley gasped as she startled awake. Her mother was asleep on the couch, and her dad was typing away on his computer. Edgar and Tommy were both gone. Hadley ran a hand through her hair, but she winced at the feeling of her stitches pulling in her skin. Her dad looked up at her from his computer at which he was no doubt typing his sermon. Hadley smiled at him and he came over, sitting slowly at her bedside. "You okay?" his deep voice asked.

"I'm fine, dad. Just a little pain in my stitches."

"Wimp," he said with a smirk.

Hadley giggled. "Thanks. Love you too," she grumbled sarcastically.


	16. Chapter 16

"So why can't I be the one to escort you back to your house?" Tommy questioned Hadley as he drove. The doctors said Hadley wasn't stable enough mentally to drive. Both her parents were busy, so Tommy wanted to take her. She hated him for it. She wanted to take a cab. Oh, she hated him for this. She hated him for trying to make amends.

Hadley tucked her knee into her chest as she watched the road in front of her, the bandages around her arms pulling at her stitches. "Because you're my ex-husband who's gay and has a boyfriend. I thought it would be obvious from all the court hearings."

Tommy sighed. "Hadley, just let me do this one nice thing for you at least."

"I don't want it."

"Why must you be so bitter...so unforgiving?" he asked.

"You betrayed me. Twice. I'll never live that down, Tommy." She buried her face in her knees and tried not to break down all over again. As she tried to calm down though, Hadley noticed something on the ground. It was a small baggie of white powder. She lifted it up and smelled it: medicine. "Tommy," Hadley said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"I found something."

"What?"

"Drugs," she said, and Tommy tensed. By this she knows all her biggest fears are true, but still she hoped. "Please tell me you aren't using. You swore to stop when we got married." Her voice cracked with sadness and his silence filled her with chills. "How long?"

"It was just once. We had a party, and Chris and I used them." Hadley's eyes closed in pain. She was glad they were almost to her home so she could actually be alone. She'd have to call Catie and tell her about the drugs. It would make Catie's day. As soon as Tommy pulled the car to a stop in front of her house, Hadley jumped out and headed straight for the door. "Hadley!" he called, following her as she walked through the door. "Let me explain this. It's not what you thing! Hadley! Haldey!"

"You can explain it in court. I'm calling Catie about this," she snapped, grabbing her cell phone off the table in the kitchen.

Tommy froze. "No. You wouldn't dare. You wouldn't fucking dare!"

Hadley froze. She'd never seen Tommy that angry before. She heard Catie pick up and put the phone to her ear, her eyes on Tommy the entire time. "Hey, Catie? I just found out something about Tom-" Suddenly, Tommy was running after her with malicious intent in his eyes. He yelled as he came at her and Hadley ran. She heard something pass her and saw a plate shatter on the floor. Oh no. He really wanted to hurt her. He hadn't ever tried to hurt her before. And now he was alone with her…in the middle of the country. "Call the police!"

Hadley made it to her study when she felt an arm go around her neck and another slide around her waist. Fear grabbed hold of her so strongly she could not breathe. The fear within her morphed into full blown terror when he tightened his grip on her body that he held in an uncomfortably intimate way. He flexed the muscle in his forearm that was pressed firmly against her neck, and she was no longer able to breathe easily as he cut off her air supply slowly. Her lungs inhaled deeply to get the oxygen they so desperately needed when he finally released her. She was jerked around to look at him face-to-face then. Before she knew what was happening, Tommy punched Hadley and sent her crashing to the floor.

Acting on the anger and loathing seething within her, Hadley kicked him when he stalked towards her; it didn't do much but piss him off. He started kicking her and aiming for her head. However, suddenly the air grew frigid, and they both heard footsteps. Then Hadley watched in horror as an invisible force shoved Tommy backwards into a bookshelf. When he collapsed, a cast-iron bookrest came tumbling down and hit his skull with a sharp crunch.

"T-Tommy?" she whimpered. She could hear sirens outside.

Hadley stared at the scene as the temperature continued to drop. Hadley thought she saw something move out of the corner of her eye and turned. There was a large, bloody handprint on the wall next to her. When she heard the police calling, Hadley called out and heard them rushing up. By then, tears were running down her eyes as she trembled and stared at the handprint. She was more scared of that than Tommy's half-dead body. Out…she needed to get out.

"Dr. Mercutio?" a voice asked. A hand was suddenly on her shoulder. "Doctor, are you okay? Doctor?"

Hadley looked up at the voice. It was Chief Doyles. She was never happier to see the bastard. Hadley shakily collapsed into his unwilling arms and started sobbing. All of this right after her release from the hospital was just too much. She didn't know how much more of this she could take. First the divorce…then Anna…and now Tommy had just tried to kill her.


	17. Chapter 17

Hadley was still wrapped in the blanket she got from the EMTs when a police officer she knew from work, Joseph Abernathy, came over and sat with her in the back of the ambulance. He was tall and lean with shirt bleach blonde hair and thick-rimmed glasses. He appeared to be more of a nerd than a police officer, but he was a good man. He and his wife came to Anna's funeral and visited her in the hospital. The guy was going places too; she let Chief know that he was going to lose his job to Abernathy a lot. Not today though. "We just got done talking to Catie, your sister, and Chris. I wanted to get your side of the story, if you're up for it."

Hadley nodded and took the watered down orange juice an EMT offered her. "What do you want to know?"

"Just tell me what happened."

"I just got out of the hospital, but the doctor's said I wasn't stable enough to drive."

"Because of your suicidal tendencies?"

"Ideations," she corrected as she gulped down the disgusting fluids. "My family was busy. Edgar, Chris, Tommy and I were at the hospital. I was going to just call a cab, but Tommy insisted he take me home and that Chris and Edgar go for lunch."

"Do you like Chris?"

"What do you think?"

Abernathy smirked. "I need your word."

"No. He stole my husband and killed my daughter. They tried him for manslaughter, but some paperwork error bailed him out of any jail time or persecution that he justly deserved."

"So, do you think that's why Tommy took you alone?"

Hadley shrugged. "Maybe. That would be something he would do. He hates conflict. So, on our way to my house, I was thinking and I looked down. I saw drugs. All I saw was a baggie of crushed pills, but the way Tommy said it made me think there were more."

"What did he say?"

"He and Chris went to a party," she said, feeling the effects of shock turn into a great desire to sleep. "Chris doesn't really keep good company."

The officer chuckled and nodded for her to go on.

"I went into the house to call Catie, and he followed me inside."

"Did you let him in?"

"No...but I left the door open. I guess…that kind of makes this my fault."

"Doctor, you know that's a bunch of victim pshycology. You need to keep your head together for your son. After he followed you?"

"When I got inside, I called Catie. I was going to tell her about the drugs because of our custody fight, Tommy threatened me, and when he heard me about to say something about the drugs…he came at me. He's never looked so angry in all his life. I told Catie to call the police before I ran for it...I-I guess I dropped my phone."

"You did. It's broken though, but it's still evidence."

"Anyway, I ran through the kitchen, and he started throwing plates.I ran into my study because I have a katana in there. I don't know what I would've done with it though. Then he got me and tried to choke me before he turned me around and punched me," she started to tremble. "And he was going to do it again, but I kicked him. And..."

Hadley recalled that she hadn't been the one to push Tommy into the shelf. No, a distinct, unseen force pushed Tommy backwards by the chest judging by how he fell. How could she tell that to a police officer? They'd put her right back into the looney bin, and she'd never get to see Edgar again. She'd never get to visit Annabelle's gravesite either. She'd have to lie and say something else, but it had to be believable.

"You can get through this doctor. What else?" the officer asked.

"And he fell back into the bookshelf. It knocked over a bookrest, and it hit his head. You guys came in right after that, and I freaked out. I'm sorry you had to see that."

"There's nothing to be sorry about." The man nodded. "You looked like you had seen a ghost."

If only he knew...

The officer stood to leave when Hadley heard a familiar voice roar at her. "You!" Chris snarled as he marched in her direction. She could see Edgar behind him with Catie, smiling as he told her about something. Good. Her baby was safe. "You bitch!"

The officer stepped in front of her. His hand automatically went to his gun at his hip. By the look on Chris' face, he might need it. "Sir, I'm going to need you to calm down."

"You couldn't let just anyone have him, could you?! Could you?! You selfish bitch! I want her arrested right now!"

"We're investigating this right now, Sir. A court hearing will begin when Mr. Hiddleston's condition is determined."

"That isn't good enough!"

"Hey!" Catie snapped. She marched over, placing Edgar in Hadley's open arms. He hugged her tightly, not letting her go. His head was buried in her neck; they would both need serious therapy after all of this. "You get the fuck off my family's land, or I'll take you to court for everything you fucking own, you sissy prick."

Chris glared but nodded, mumbling a "sorry" before leaving. Catie harrumphed in victory before talking with the officers. Apparently the unusual rage from both males was caused by mixes of alcohol, cocaine, and drug withdrawals. Fear swallowed Hadley when she remembered that she let Edgar go to lunch with that nut job. Hadley smiled at Edgar though and gave him an Eskimo kiss, making him giggle. She made her blanket into a cape for him, and she started flying him around despite the doctor's orders not to lift much with her stitches. She didn't care though; she was just happy to be with her son. Soon he was playing with the policemen who had nothing else to do.

Hadley sighed when Catie came over. "Do I have a case?"

"Sister, you have a jackpot. There's no way they're winning anything now. We could ask for their fucking souls and we'd still win."


	18. Chapter 18

Hadley scowled at the papers and books in front of her. She had been in the library for almost two hours. Two hours! Ever since the incident with Tommy, Hadley had been researching Freddie Page. Ever since she put up his portrait, all of this weird stuff was happening in her home to her family…well, mostly just to her. That's why he was who she thought was in her house doing all the freaky stuff, but the dreams were confusing her. Was he trying to tell her something? What would someone like him need to tell her? That's why she was in the library. She wanted to know what he was trying to tell her or at least what her weird dreams meant. To do that, she needed to know a little more about their subject: Freddie.

"So...he was an RAF pilot in WWII. That explains the whole Kraut thing," she grumbled, poring over old military documents she got off a website. Hadley was never so thankful for the internet in all her life. It made things so much easier. "But why the sudden change in address in 1949?"

"What?" Catie asked, hunched over her laptop moodily. "Are you still doing that ancestor thing?" she grumbled. "Do you ever quit? You're like a mosquito?"

"Yes...why would someone change addresses all of a sudden?"

"I don't know. Rats, death, thin walls, new girlfriend, bad-"

"That's it! Hester!" Hadley said, remembering her dream all of a sudden. "Or whoever that uppity lady was," she added to herself.

"What's it? Hey!"

Hadley hurriedly jerked the laptop away from Catie and started typing at a speedy rate. It took her ten minutes, but she finally found what she needed and printed it off before returning the stolen laptop to her sister. "So Hester Collyer was the wife of a High Court judge and lived with him until...1950. Ha! Catie, you're a genius, and I love you."

"I know I am. How do you know this Hester chick anyway? Why does she matter?" Catie grumbled.

"Hush. She filed for a divorce, but it never went beyond an order of separation. So that means she and Freddie...yep they had the same address. But what changed?"

"Hadley, it's three in the morning. I'm tired. Can't we do this tomorrow?"

"No, Catie. I'm going to finish this now. I won't have time with the court hearing tomorrow."

"You're lucky this is a twenty-four hour library, Hadley, or you'd be screwed."

She would ignore that comment. "Freddie moved away to... Rio in that same year. That's weird. His relationship didn't really last that long. He was to receive work, but he never made it to his first day. He was kidnaped along with a group of four tourists and...a local doctor. The kidnappers wanted ransom, but never received it."

"You ready now?" Catie asked. "I'm tired."

"Almost. Let me grab a few things," she said, running off down a nonfiction aisle.

When she stopped, Hadley was in the paranormal and cryptozoology section of the library. She was looking for books when she heard footsteps coming after her. Hadley looked up, but no one was there...not even her sister. She was alone, but she could hear the footsteps getting closer. She tensed when she saw a book fall from the shelf and open. It flipped to a page and then was still. She heard tapping and saw the book pages pushed down in time with the tapping. It was like someone was tapping their finger on a passage. Hadley knelt down and picked up the book:

_"Chapter Eight-Spirits Inhabiting Empty Bodies"_

Hadley picked up the book and tucked it under her arm as she walked back to where Catie was. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing straight on end. She was fast asleep with her laptop case held to her chest like it was her pillow. Hadley smirked as she shook her awake and Catie called her by her boyfriend's name. When Catie finally woke up, she and Hadley left the library. The odd thing was that Hadley felt as if there were somebody watching her and following her. Even when she was dropped off at her house, the feeling persisted. It was so bad that Hadley decided to forgo a shower.

When Hadley went to her kitchen after dressing for bed, there was a bottle of wine and two glasses. She knew Edgar didn't know where she kept the liquor, and the glasses were too high up for him to reach. Her hands immediately started shaking as she touched the glasses: cold to the touch. Instead of taking a drink, she immediately put everything back and hurried upstairs. Edgar was curled up under the covers in his own bed. He was finally getting used to the blindness. His counselor thought he should try sleeping alone. He was doing so well. Hadley was so proud of him. That thought was what helped her forget the eeriness of her dark home and helped her sleep.


	19. Chapter 19

Hadley walked into the hospital room and saw tear after tear cascade down Chris' face, shimmering in the white light of the sterile hospital room. She felt nothing for him but pity like one would feel for a deer they shot because it was suffering. Hadley couldn't realy feel anything for Chris anymore; he wasn't even human in her eyes. She brought Edgar along so he could visit his dad; maybe brighten his spirits a little bit. When she saw Tommy though, Hadley knew there wouldn't be much brightening happening in their room. Tommy's eyes were sunken in, and his skin was splotchy and covered in a horrible pallor. An intubation tube protruded from horridly cracked and chapped lips. After sitting Edgar down, Hadley used her own chapstick to soothe the dried up things. Only after that did she check his status in his file that was left behind. Two words stuck out at her: vegetative state.

It seemed Tommy had been thrown just this side of too hard into the shelf by Freddie. That bookstop must have been what sealed the deal for him. The bandaging on his head looked fresh, so she peeled it away gently to look at the injury for herself. They had to go in surgically to remove skull fragments from his brain tissue. Then they drilled a hole to relieve the swelling of his brain. The suture looked well-done, but Hadley thought she could have done a better job. After all, she was a medical examiner for the state; she did sutures on all of her patients. Stepping back, she looked at her husband's body overall. He'd only been unconscious for a month, but he didn't look the same. It was just a shell of him; his eyes would never wake up with that bright merriment. They'd never look at her…or at Edgar. The last she ever saw of those eyes was in a look of hate and rage. Tears filled her eyes.

Chris sat glued to the plastic hospital chair, clutching Tommy's pale hand. He had been stuck in a rehabilitation center for a while. He was cleared to leave just last week according to the Chief who decided he "didn't like the crafty little bastard." He glared up at her, but she ignored him to kneel in front of Edgar. He needed to know the truth. Hadley would never lie to him. "Edgar, sweetie," she whispered with heartbreaking anguish. "Your daddy...he isn't gonna wake up. When daddy left in the ambulance, he was already dead. His soul left his body, but the doctors are keeping the body alive. Does...does that make sense, baby?"

Edgar was quiet for a little bit, and he sniffled before he managed to speak. "Why are they...k-keeping him like that?"

"They're doing it because doctors should always try to save people. Think of this as God giving you a chance to say goodbye to daddy. This way, he can still hear you like you're up close."

Edgar's eyes stared down as he clutched her hand in both of his. Despite how much he disclaimed it, Edgar did love Tommy. He would miss him very much, but he wasn't as sad as he could be. Tommy had burned a bridge halfway without even knowing. Hadley sat him on the bed beside Tommy and stood back to let him have his privacy. The constant beep of Tommy's heart monitor and the click of the respirator kept Hadley firmly in reality in the sterile room. Seconds...minutes passed without change and any fleeting hope remaining in was torn out with each moment Tommy was still and lifeless.

Sometime later, a man clad in a white lab coat walked in and stood next to Hadley. The man began checking Tommy's vitals. Soon, the doctor was back at her side. "Since you're still legally married to Mr. Hiddleston, ma'am that means you're now his decision maker. We can't defer to his partner."

"No!" Chris snapped, standing suddenly, making Edgar jump and cringe. "She'll kill him! He's still alive in there! You can't let he-"

"I'm sorry, sir. This is the way it is. You should try to keep moving on with your life. Mr. Hiddleston...he won't wake up. I'm sorry," the doctor said before leaving.

Chris walked up to Hadley with tears rolling down his cheeks. "Don't you dare. Don't you dare kill him! If you do, I-I'll...I'll get them to try you for murder. I swear I'll get you back if you even think about it."

Despite this blatant threat, Hadley made no effort to move, no effort to leave or even back down from him. "I pity you, Chris, and because I pity you, I will let you stay with Tommy whenever you like for the time being. One of these days, you'll realize that I'm right. You need time to grieve though, so I'll let you grieve."

The beeping of the heart monitor rang painfully loud, the only sound in Hadley's ears, making her walk over to Edgar and run her fingers through his hair. He leaned back, and his cheeks were blotchy from tears. He laid his head against her chest. "I wanna go home, momma. I don't like it here."

"Okay, sweetie. That's okay. We can go home now," she said as she took his hand and led him into the hall. She requested termination of life support papers, but she wanted to go over it all with Catie.


	20. Chapter 20

Hadley was in her former home in the kitchen while Tommy argued with a four-year-old Annabelle. Dear God, that meant she was pregnant again. "Daddy! Stay home and play!" Anna whined. She was still in her pink pajamas and her hair was a curly mess just like Tommy's was in the morning. She begged her father and clung to his arm with a Vulcan death grip. Tommy was in his white shirt and blue pajama pants.

"I can't, Anna. You know I have to go to work," he reasoned with his little bundle of joy.

"Skip! Skip!" she squealed as she pulled off her puppy-eyes trick.

Tommy picked her up. "Mommy is gonna get mad if I don't go to work, you know," he explained. "We need money to pay bills."

Anna tilted her head in disappointment. She had already exhibited her father's trait of avoiding work like the plague. Despite this though, it was obvious where she got her personality: her mother. She was bubbly and stubborn, but she was a good girl. "You're a good girl right?" a suddenly deeper, more accented voice asked as he fixed her hair. Hadley watched as Tommy slowly morphed into Freddie before her eyes. It didn't take very much to do it either. Just one or two glitch fixes, and Freddie would be Tommy and vice versa.

"Of course I am." Anna replied. She obviously hadn't noticed the change. What was going on?

"Then you'll let daddy go to work."

"Well...okay. But!"

"But?" Freddie asked.

"You have to tell me why."

"Why what?" Freddie asked as he became Tom.

"Why I died?"

Suddenly Anna was very pale and older. She had blood on her head...coming out of her nose and ears. Hadley could feel her gorge rising as Tommy grew thinner, and his head suddenly caved in and blood was trickling down his face. Then they both turned and looked to her as if she had the answers for what the hell was going on. Hadley backed up until she ran into a body, and hands covered her eyes. They felt dead, but it was better than seeing what she had been seeing before.

When the hands moved away, Hadley was in her current bedroom. She could see herself sleeping in the bed, wearing what she wore to bed that night. Then she saw Tommy's body instead of her. A hand rested on her shoulder, and Hadley turned around to see the portrait staring straight at her. Hadley took a step back, but she was falling into a bottomless pit.

* * *

With a jolt, Hadley sat up in bed and looked around her room. Beside her, Edgar was sleeping deeply. He had been so upset about Tommy dying that he had to be put on a sedative. Hadley was covered in a cold sweat, and her heart was racing. She was terrified-for some reason-to look in the corner of her room. It was in the corner of her eye. She felt like...like she was being watched by someone...or maybe something. She thought she could see something move.

Edgar murmured as he rolled over and into her side. He was a mouth breather, so the sound of his breathing always filled a room. She always thought it was so adorable. Watching him relaxed her to the point she was able to lay back down. She curled herself over Edgar protectively and soon found herself slipping off into sleep. Hadley could almost swear she felt the brush of cold lips on her cheek as she dozed off again.


	21. Chapter 21

"Good to see you back in action, Dr. Hiddles...fuck, I'm sorry. I meant Mercutio," the officer said as he opened the door for her to access the morgue.

"It's alright," Hadley said with a sad and weary smile. She felt like crap, and her day wasn't turning out well. Her favorite bra was dirty, so she had to wear an uncomfortable lingerie piece. Then she was almost late because Edgar was getting clingy again and had to stay at her parents' house. To make matters worse, her hair wasn't as straight as it was this morning, and her makeup wasn't finished. Other than that, though, she was just dandy. At least her mandatory scrubs were clean. The top was a black mock wrap, and she had to wear the most God awful traffic-cone yellow pants. "Is there a reason you're meeting me down here, officer?"

"I was told I uh...needed to be present for the Moorecaster autopsy."

"Your first?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Got a video camera?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Give it to me. I'll record it, and that way, you can puke somewhere other than my office, and I'll still have privacy. I can't have you corrupting evidence with your biological matter," she said, taking said camera and leaving the officer there with a nod. Total greenhorn.

When she got to her lab, Hadley first unlocked her little side office and checked the thermostat. Sixty degrees: the perfect temperature to freeze to death and keep bodies from oozing nastiness. She put on her protective gear next and pulled out the file of her first victim: Alabama Moorecaster. He was in a highway standoff between police after robbing a casino. Obviously it hadn't ended well, but the authorities needed to know if one of their boys did the deed or something else. It wouldn't be the first time it happened. She left her office and pulled the body from the freezer. He was tall and meaty with big lips and two buck teeth that peeked out from underneath. Stubble covered his neck and chin as well as acne and meth scars.

"Alright, Mr. Moorecaster," Hadley began. "Here in Autopsy we do autopsies. Mainly on dead people...no always on dead people." She always talked to bodies, mostly to pass the time. After all, she was stuck alone in a basement from nine to five and sometimes longer than that. "Autopsy means 'to look for one's self,' so you could autopsy a movie or a girlfriend and still be correct, though maybe not popular. To perform an autopsy or post-mortem examination, we need a body: that's you."

Hadley walked casually over to a stainless steel drawer with a tiny cart. She started bringing items either to the table or to the cart until she had what she needed and returned to her patient. "Now, Mr. Moorecaster, there are four things you want from an autopsy: time of death, cause of death, damage done to the body, and the manner of death. For time of death you need the ambient temperature, humidity and an estimate of body temperature. Luckily, you're a fresh one, so it's less work.

"When they hand you over to me, I do an x-ray. Once I finish the x-ray, the body comes into morgue. So, now we're ready for your external exam," she said as she pulled a scalpel. She took samples of everything: fingerprints, fingernail samples, hair samples, fibers, mold, and paint. Hadley grabbed the camera. "Alright, patient seems to have, scrapes on knees and...knuckles. It goes along with police reports of the death fall. And uh...oh, he has herpes. See?" she turned off the camera again and started to photograph tattoos and wounds with a ruler to get the scale.

She flipped the camera back on. "Patient weighs 256 lbs., mostly in muscle. Caucasian in race, uh...brown eyes and auburn hair. He looks to be about 6'3". Blood type is...A negative." She shut it off. Hadley had to scrounge about for a body block, a black brick placed under the body directly below the chest. It made the chest cavity more accessible and less likely to fold in while cutting. Hadley then attached the camera up above the body, but left it off for the time being. Then she sliced into the body deftly.

In a moment of sadistic glee, Hadley turned on the camera. "Now I'm peeling back the skin to reveal the chest. There isn't any bleeding because the blood has pooled at his back, but if I nick his gluteus maximus, it would be like a red tsunami." Hadley picked up a large pair of secateurs. "Now for the fun part. Now we just cut the ribs...and lift out the ribcage to reveal the organs. It's just like lifting the cover off a meal," she said before turning it off. That'd show Sheriff Dimwit for sending the greenhorn to her lair...uh office.

The next scene she shot had Hadley standing to the right of the body. "Now, I've examined all of the organs. Didn't really find anything out of the ordinary except," she pulled the heart out of a jar and pulled away a clamp on the aorta. "There's a lot of clogging. If I squeeze this," she ran the aorta between her fingers, squishing out a white fatty substance. "You can see the cholesterol." She could practically hear those bastards upstairs in their debriefing retching on coffee. "He was a smoker by the way, Officer Doyles." In the next shot, she stabbed the stomach, and a wet mixture oozed out. That was it though. Ha!

The camera cut to Hadley at the body's head, circular saw in hand. The top of Alabama's head was gone, and his furry scalp was left over his face. She was covered in goo and blech, but her eyes were glowing with mirth and an old spark. "I found something! He has a chemical imbalance judging by the size of his pituitary," she pulled the brain out with a gooey sound and showed them the gland. "That should be the size of an...I'll get the example when I've cleaned up. Anyway, this means he was likely not mentally all...there," she went off into space.

What if that's what Freddie had been trying to tell her? Put him in Tommy's body! They were the perfect pairing! Suddenly, Hadley realized the camera was still on. "Oh, sorry. Anyway. Found the killshot. I doubt forensics will be able to determine exactly which cop fired the kill shot. Toodles, I've got to stitch Mr. Moorecaster up and ship him off." She had an assistant take the tape and camera upstairs. Hadley hoped they enjoyed it.


	22. Chapter 22

After everything they had been through together...this would be the end of it. The end of an Age. How could that be? Hadley had taken such good care of Tommy. She couldn't think about that right now though; there was no saving Tommy. He was already long gone. Chris was beside her in the hospital room; he was fighting with the doctor tooth-and-nail to keep Tommy on life support. However, it was Hadley's decision to make as Tommy's wife. They made the vows to each other; Chris had just been on the sidelines then. If she'd known, she would never have introduced those two. She stood silent and emotionless as the man who took her life cried and begged. It would have felt good...rewarding even, if she wasn't losing someone too. Her mind was now on the transfer papers in her hand. She was having Tommy moved to her bedroom where he would die in her arms. Chris would be nowhere in sight. He could wait outside.

"I'm sorry Mr. Hemsworth, but I really don't think Thomas will wake up. Even if we did keep him on life support, we would just be delaying the inevitable. All our tests show that the damage to his brain is too severe. If he did wake up, it wouldn't be Tommy anymore."

"Isn't there anything you can do?"

"I'm sorry, but we've already done everything we can for him. The only thing keeping him alive now is those machines. Maybe you should see a grief counselor about this. It would help you."

"Look again douche bag!" Chris snapped.

"I agree with Mrs. Hiddleston-"

"Don't call her that! Tommy was...he was mine. He was all mine."

The doctor seemed unsettled by the outburst. "I really think it'd be kinder to let him go now peacefully. You're only going to make it harder on you, Mrs. Hidd...Ms. Hadley, and their son by watching him waste away in this bed."

"Are you sure there's no chance he can wake up? There have to be more tests. Something. Anything?"

"Is there anyone we can call for you? You shouldn't be alone," the doctor urged.

"No. Tommy and I's friends have all said their goodbyes."

"What about you, Mrs. uhm..."

"Call me Ms. Mercutio. I'm going to be okay, doctor. I've come to terms with this. I...I think I can do this. My sister will be at my home as well."

About an hour and half a box of Kleenex later, they finally had Tommy lying comfortably in her bed. He wasn't in a hospital gown; he was in a pair of pajamas she had brought along…just in case. Edgar was at her parents' again, oblivious to what was about to happen to his father. She didn't want him to go through literally watching his father go. Chris was not allowed on the premises after several death and bodily harm threats recorded by police. It was just Hadley and an anonymous nurse. Hadley had Tommy's upper body cradled in her lap as the nurse bustled about the room. She ran her fingers through his curls like he used to love, and she constantly kissed his chapped upper lip, eyes, forehead and cheeks.

"How's he doing? Is he feeling any sort of pain?"

"No, he was given morphine for the move just as you requested, Mrs. Hiddleston."

"I just...want him to be comfortable," she mumbled.

"That's understandable, ma'am."

Hadley had been so caught up in her own thoughts of the past that she missed a lot of time that had gone by. She was pulled back to reality when a voice called from downstairs. It was Catie. "Hey," she said gently. "How are you?"

"I'm...I...I don't know Catie," she cried as she watched Tommy. She wiped her tears from his cheeks gingerly.

"I'm just here for support since you asked mom and dad to watch Eddie."

"Can I have a few moments alone with him please?"

"Yeah, I'll make a pot of tea," she said, bringing the nurse with her.

"Tommy," Hadley whispered. "I want you to know that I'll always love you, and you'll always hold a place in my heart. But there's someone who can use your body now while you can't. Edgar can have a father and...maybe I can have a friend like you again. I'll never not love you."

Ten minutes later, the nurse returned and began shutting off the machines. She didn't feel the familiar sag of death because Tommy was already gone. Now she looked at the portrait and just nodded softly, holding Tommy's body and rocking him as he flatlined and officially died. The nurse pulled the IVs and tubes and wires before declaring the time of death. She tried to get Hadley to let go, but she wouldn't even budge. She never tore her eyes off the portrait either. Suddenly, Tommy shot up with a gasp and flailed about like a fish out of water. Catie screamed, the nurse jumped back, but Hadley just stared.

"Where. The fuck. Am I?"

That didn't sound like Tommy. No...that sounded like Freddie from her dreams. It was deeper and sounded more foreign.

"Sir," the nurse said as she examined him. "Do you know what the year is? Do you know who you are?"

"Are you daft, woman? It's 1951. I'm former RAF pilot Frederic Page. Now where am I?" he snarled at her rather viciously.

"Holy fucked up shit."

"You said it, Catie."


	23. Chapter 23

Radio entertainment was pretty much a thing of the past apparently. This was something Freddie learned quite recently because Ms. Hadley was trying to catch him up with modern technology and to teach him about new wonders of the world. Whatever happened to just turning on the radio to listen to a game or listen to a show? What about saving up to go to the movies to see the latest flick? What about going to grab a pint with the pals? These things were apparently dead much to Freddie's chagrin. He quite enjoyed these things in his first life.

Freddie was slowly beginning to come to the conclusion that the wonders of his years died long ago and many new revelations about human entertainment and everything else had cropped up. Now, if one wanted to know who was winning a rugby game, all they had to do was log onto a "computer" and read the score on a "website." If you wanted to watch a movie, you could go to "websites" and stay at home for free. Anything that he would have had to leave the house for before was easily accessible via the tiny computers that came in more shapes and sizes than he could comprehend. He could even talk over them like phones with pictures. The world was taking leaps and bounds, and all he could muster was a slow sputter to try to keep up with it.

When Ms. Hadley had first handed Freddie what she had called a "laptop," Freddie couldn't even begin to comprehend what it was, let alone how open it. He held it gingerly; it was thin and seemed like a flick of the wrist would be all it took to break it. After Ms. Hadley giggled and blushed, she sat next to Freddie and patiently taught him the basics of the machine. He felt like a foolish git needing all this help. "You start by opening it like this," she said as she slowly opened the laptop, making the screen illuminate in the process before placing the machine in the former pilot's jumpy lap.

Freddie subconsciously leaned away from the machine that she dropped into his lap when the screen glowed bright blue. Ms. Hadley typed in something on buttons at the bottom, and then the screen lit with a picture of the British flag on it. The fact that such a small device could illuminate so brightly was quite unnerving to him. What made it do that? What else could it do? Freddie had so many questions to ask.

"Alright, now you're going to have to use the keyboard, the part below the screen with the lettered buttons on it, and the mouse to type your name in that box below the logo. The track pad is the part that you use to move the mouse." When Freddie shot her a look of confusion and horror, she quickly replied, "It's just a name for the arrow on the screen. No real critters."

Freddie smirked when Ms. Hadley informed him the mouse was just jargon for the miniscule arrow on the screen. "So I just use my finger here, and the mouse should…" he muttered as he used his finger on the track pad. "MOVE! My God, that is amazing! How is it moving at the same time that I am?" he questioned with childlike amazement as he fiddled with his finger on the track pad, watching as the mouse moved on the screen as well. He even started doing little figure-eights which the mouse followed as well.

Ms. Hadley smiled as she watched him. "Move the arrow to the box and tap once. There you go. Now type your name in with the keys."

Freddie looked down and furrowed his brow at the keys. It should have been easy, but many of the keys had multiple symbols on them and many of them were gibberish to him. He didn't want to disappoint Ms. Hadley, so he focused on using the keys. Using only one index finger, he was using his other hand to cradle the laptop to prevent it from falling; he slowly pecked out his first name into the field. He looked up for further instructions.

"Good. You got it right on your first try. Now put your last name with no spaces," she said as he watched Steve begin to type again. Damn, Freddie could do this, it wasn't too bad. He was doing fine. He finished off his last name with two index fingers this time, adding to his repertoire of skills with every click of the keyboard. "Now hit the enter button. Great, you've officially used technology. Congratulations!"

"Ms. Hadley," Freddie said, sitting the laptop gingerly on the coffee table before turning to face her. "This is much too expensive. It must have cost you at least 200 euro. I can't accept such a gift from a beautiful lady."

"Actually," Ms. Hadley said blushing and pushing a lock of beautiful brown hair out of her pale face. "It was worth about 400 euros," Freddie's eyes nearly fell from his head. Who spent 400 euros?! Who had 400 euros? How rich was this woman?! "That's not the point though. I wanted to do it. If you're really that concerned, I have a favor...to ask you," she said, looking away, seemingly guilty. "You could work it off, I suppose."

"Yes? What can I do for you?" he asked, taking one of her too-thin hands into his much larger ones.

"Would you...you know how you're in Edgar's father's body? Well, I was just wondering if-"

"If I'll be a father to him?"

"Yes," she said smiling. "Would you?"

"Ms. Hadley, for a beauty like you, I'd do anything?" He still had the charm.

"Thank you. It means a lot to me," she said with a soft smile. "A whole lot."

"That's all the more reason for me to do it," he said, kissing her hand and making her blush. Yes. Freddie Page still had it.


	24. Chapter 24

The reason for Hadley to be awake at seven in the morning on a Saturday was not because it was of her own volition. It was because it was then that Edgar decided it was time to get up from his warm cocoon of her arms. That meant he was jostling her out of her sleep. Meanwhile, Freddie insisted he sleep on the couch. He was being quite the gentleman with her; it was refreshing from what she'd been used to being subjected to with Chris and Tommy lately.

"Momma," Edgar mumbled.

"Hey baby, how'd you sleep?" Hadley asked, getting out of bed and yawning as she slipped a robe on over her sweats and tank top.

"Good. I'm hungry."

"Me too. Let's go get some breakfast," she said as she let her son lead the way. Edgar was doing well with being blind. He was already able to walk to the house by himself, and he could get through some parts of the house. He sat in a chair and started coloring with the new scented markers Hadley bought him. That way he could stop asking her what the colors were before he used them, and Hadley could actually get some things done around the house.

Hadley started baking slices of bacon, and she also made eggs Benedict and oatmeal because she didn't know what Freddie liked to eat. This was the first breakfast she'd ever cooked for him. When she was done, she made three plates and sat them on the table beside two mugs of coffee and one of hot chocolate milk or Edgar's "kiddy coffee." Apparently while Hadley had her head down, Freddie padded into the dining area and sat next to Edgar and stared at the food.

"Good morning, Freddie," Hadley said as she sat on Edgar's other side.

"Good morning. How are you, Edgar?" he asked with a smirk.

"Good," Edgar said before munching on a twig of bacon. "How're uu?"

"Edgar. Food, mouth, manners," Hadley said as she stared at her coffee. She was never much of a morning person. Imagine her surprise when both of her babies were born at the butt crack of dawn. Such thoughts took her back to Anna. Those were always such happy memories.

They ate in revered silence for a few moments before Edgar spoke again. "Momma what are we doing today?"

"I thought we'd go out to that tire swing and visit the cows. We haven't shown your Uncle Freddie the-"

"Don't call him Uncle! That name makes bad things happen!" he yelled, sounding panicked.

"E-Edgar." Hadley felt a knot rise in her throat. "Edgar…go get dressed," she said, her voice cracking as she dashed to the kitchen with an armload of dishes. She couldn't get emotional now in front of Freddie. She had been making such progress.

When she was done, she went upstairs and got ready herself. For the first time in a while, she actually wanted to look nice. It scared her a little bit. Was she tarnishing all the good memories she and Tommy had? Was she committing some kind of adultery? A sour feeling welled up in her stomach at the very thought. Focusing on what to wear, Hadley decided on a belted white and black summer dress. She even put on some makeup for the first time since she lost Annabelle. When she finished everything, she walked downstairs to see Freddie and Edgar talking while Edgar drew on the couch. When she came down the stairs, Freddie stood in a pair of jeans and a dark green v-neck t-shirt. He looked a little out of sorts in it.

"You look very stunning, Ms. Hadley," he said as he looked at her. Hadley could only blush at such attention; it was uncommon. "As usual I should say. Shall we?" he asked, offering his arm.

Hadley smiled. "Sure. Ready to go, Edgar."

"Yup."

"Got your walking cane?"

"Yup!"

"Alright then."

Hadley let Edgar lead the way until they got to the pasture gate. He was so eager to go back out there; he was nearly jumping up and down. Hadley even thought she saw a little dancing in there. Ever since the accident, Hadley sometimes forgot that Edgar was only six. He had to grow up so fast, but he could still be happy despite it all. She admired her baby for it. Hadley opened and closed the gate and made Edgar take her other hand as they walked. The sound of the clanging gate drew the herd of twenty-six cows to come after them seeking food. Up ahead, there was a large oak that had a newly safety-checked tire swing on it.

While Edgar walked around, Hadley sat out a blanket under the tree's shade. Freddie had been recruited by Edgar to get him into the swing. "Freddie, push me!" Edgar shouted with a laugh. Soon, Freddie had him squealing and laughing as he soared through the air. She missed that sound more than she realized. She could hear Freddie laughing too. Well, maybe it was more of a chuckle. That sound was new to her; she liked it.

Freddie plopped down beside her, panting slightly a few minutes later. "That should keep him entertained for a while," he said smiling as he sat down.

"You'd be surprised. Kids tend to have a lot of energy to burn."

"I've noticed."

Hadley giggled and stared out at the property. "Thank you again, Freddie. I...Freddie?"

Freddie's eyes were wide as he pressed himself to the tree. His eyes were wide and he flinched when a cow came by the tree to find a patch of grass. He relaxed though, but he still looked a little on edge. "What? What were you saying?"

"I was…just thanking you. Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine. Just thought I heard something."

"Are you sure?" Hadley asked. He looked oddly like her great uncle after...after he got back from the war. Did Freddie Page have PTSD?

"Of course. It takes a lot more hooplah to get a good ole boy like me off his rocker."

Hadley smiled. "We need to work on your linguistics."

"My what?"

"Nothing. Nothing."

They sat there in silence, side-by-side while a few cows came to graze or lay in the tree's shade. Then they both turned toward each other to say something at the same time, making them come quite close to each other. They were so close that Hadley's blunt button nose lightly brushed Freddie's. Hadley hurriedly looked away and hid a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Uh...you first," she said, trying to casually put distance between them.

"I hope I wasn't too forward earlier with my compliment, Ms. Hadley."

"Please, just call me Hadley. It wasn't forward at all I actually," she blushed and bit her lip, thinking of the right thing to say. "Thought it was sweet of you. Thank you, again."

"Don't worry about it, Ms...I mean, Hadley. Anything for you."


	25. Chapter 25

It was one in the afternoon when Chris drove up to the house Hadley was keeping Tommy locked away from him in. It had taken a trip to the hospital morgue and eight funeral homes to realize that Tommy wasn't dead; he actually woke up. He had never given up on his lover! How could he? He knew he was still alive, damn it! Chris made sure no one was home except Tommy before eagerly knocking on the door waiting to look on his lover's face again. As soon as the door opened to reveal a familiar lanky figure with a mop of curls, Chris rushed in to take him into his arms. Tommy's skin was smooth to the touch; it always was. It was one of the things Chris loved. Chris marveled at just how soft it was, how easily he could run his thumb over a lean shoulder as he kissed his love so passionately. It was cut short by a punch to the gut and a knee to the jaw though. Suddenly, Chris was grunting and groaning on the floor. This wasn't quite how he pictured their reunion.

"Bloody hell, man! You don't just barge into someone's house and kiss them on the fucking mouth! What the bloody hell's wrong with you? Christ! Who the fuck are you anyway?"

The words hit Chris like a freight train. He'd never expect that this was coming. Did he have amnesia or something? The doctor said it was a possibility. He let out a shuddering breath before standing and staring. "Tommy, I-I'm your boyfriend, Chris. Surely you remember...that night. All the time we've shared together."

"Together? With you? Hell no. Why would I want to remember someone like you?"

He knew this was a possibility since Hadley hit him so hard. Chris took a step forward, and Tommy took up a defensive stance against him, eyes cold. However, those weren't Tommy's eyes...not the Tommy he knew anyway. Chris closed his eyes, blocking the room from of his sight. "Do you remember the divorce then?"

"Divorce? What divorce?"

Chris gulped. "You were leaving Hadley for me?"

Tommy grinned sadistically. "He left her...for an ugly git like you?! Oh that's pathetic. What sort of idiot leaves a girl like that for something like you?" Tommy said, his eyes narrowing darkly. "I'm shocked, really."

"W-What? But...why would you do this to us?" Chris felt his throat tighten as the words left his lips. He couldn't let his Tommy go. Not when they had such a wonderful life together for those few months. Surely if he came back home he would remember everything.

"Why do you think? I'm not a bloody fairy like you. I happen to find the fairer sex much more appealing than your ugly old mug. Why don't you go ahead and bugger off then? Don't come back to piss me off either."

The very sound of his voice was enough to break...no, shatter Chris' heart. He was so broken already, and Chris wished nothing more than to mend this whole thing, rewind time. He wanted desperately to go back to when he could hold all those gangly limbs under the covers on a chilly night. "Do you remember when we first met?" he asked.

"No, and I don't want to. Quit fishing around for answers and get out."

A bitter laugh cut through Tommy's biting words. "You were so proud of your family then...well, Hadley. I remember just how committed you were, you'd said you'd never cheat on her, you loved her so much. And then we..." There was a long pause. "I wonder...if you'd met me first, would you have married me instead?"

Tommy scoffed as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Doubt it. And don't you ever say her name again. You're not worthy of it."

Chris' own glare became steely as he faces down Tommy. This is just like it was before only a little more difficult because he now knew how beautiful their lives could be. He could still win him back with time and persistence though. That's all he needed: time and persistence. He could still win this. He broke the stare and turned for the door. Before he left though, he looked back. "I will never abandon you, lover. You're my soulmate."

"Christ, it's like a bloody woman with a dick! Get out!" he snarled, slamming the door on Chris. He would win him back. "And get some cunt while you're out!" he snapped before slamming the door behind Chris.


	26. Chapter 26

Freddie had been a little nervous when he was to spend some time with Hadley. She said it was to update him on what life was like now. He wore a pair of khaki trousers and a dress shirt, something simple. He wasn't going to try and over-impress the poor thing; he'd just let whatever happened happen at the park. If anything even happened in the first place, that is. Christ, he was babbling again. What was wrong with him? He was so lost in thought that he hardly noticed Hadley. She looked so beautiful with those long brown locks and big blue eyes. Her pale skin spritzed with a few freckles on her cheeks made her seem more youthful. Something about those freckles felt familiar to him, but he…didn't know why. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a blouse that made her chest that much more plump. She was stunning.

"Hello? Freddie?"

"Oh, yes?"

"Are you ready to go to the park?" Hadley asked with a smirk.

Freddie smiled. "Of course," he went to the door and opened it. "After you."

"You're quite the gentleman, Sir," Hadley said coyly. "Should I be concerned?"

"Of course not," Freddie said laughing. "Now, shall I guide you to the nearest pub?" he asked before they both started laughing.

When they got to the park, they sat down together on a park bench in front of a fountain that was being worked on by construction workers. As Freddie sat on the hard wooden seat, he couldn't help but look at his surroundings. He watched as pedestrians walked by, and he noticed that a lot of the people in the park were young couples or families. It made him feel good that people could still enjoy time with friends and loved ones; at least that hadn't changed. At the same time it made him wonder if he would ever have a chance to have time like that. In his first life, he never really thought about it...or wanted to either. Now, though? Maybe things could be different for him. Maybe it was just because he was living with a single woman and her child. Was this that moment some talked about: getting their shit together? Freddie had been deep in his thoughts; he hadn't been paying attention when someone called his name.

"What was that?" he asked, feeling a tad bit embarrassed that he did not hear Hadley for the second time that evening.

"You seem a bit out of it. Were you day dreaming or something?"

"Sort of," he admitted, embarrassed. "I was thinking about some things."

"Like what?"

Usually, he wouldn't answer such prying. Why the hell did he want to tell Hadley? Maybe it was because he owed her. He felt like he could trust her. He hadn't had that sort of relationship with anyone before, and he'd only known this woman for a few short days. "The past," Freddie admitted; he hadn't had a problem opening up to Hadley and talking compared to him trying to talk to one of the other women he once had in his life. That usually ended disastrously.

"Do you...wanna talk about it? I mean, I know some things but not everything."

Freddie sighed, laying his head in his hands behind him. "That's a long story, darling," he said.

"We have time."

Freddie sighed. "I-I don't really think this is an appropriate conversation for a date. Do you?"

Hadley blushed. "We're trying to get to know each other better."

She really wasn't going to quit. "Alright, but only because you asked. I was...in the War. I pretty much lived in between excitement and fear all the time. The Battle of Britain...it was all," he said, trying not to think about it. If he did, the memories would start coming back. They were coming back.

"You were a pilot weren't you?" Hadley asked, reaching over to touch his hand. Freddie flinched. She snapped him out of a flashback; he clutched her hand, trying to keep the memories away. He didn't want to see that again…not again. "You lost a lot of friends."

"Y-Yeah. But, I'm sure there are a million stories like mine," he needed to change the subject before he got too emotional. "I uh, after the war I got with this married gal-"

"Hester?"

"How did you know?" he asked, looking up with rubbed-red cheeks. He needed to stay on a neutral playing field.

"We'll talk about it later. Keep going," Hadley said, squeezing his hand. "You should talk about this."

"She tried to kill herself just...just because I forgot her bloody birthday. Who does that?" he snapped before pausing and regaining his composure. He couldn't believe that was still such a bloody raw nerve. "Anyway, I got a job over in Rio, and I rented an apartment on the wrong side of town. I was kidnapped because I was English. That's...all I remember."

"I'm sorry, Freddie," she said softly. Then she gasped. Freddie looked at her and noticed she was looking at him oddly. It wasn't pitiful; it looked shocked and in awe.

"What?"

"Y-Your hair...and your nose."

"What about them?"

"They're not Tommy's anymore. Your features...they're changing to match your consciousness I think," she said, inching closer and running her fingers through his slicked back hair. "The roots are turning black."

"And my nose?" he asked with a smirk and quirked eyebrow.

"It's...narrower and maybe a bit longer."

Freddie couldn't help but stare as she looked at him with awe and...possibly affection. He also saw a hint of sadness lingering in her deep blue eyes. He blushed as her face came much closer to his as she investigated his face further. Oh, her lips looked marvelous in that shade of reddish brown lipstick; it made her look seductive. "Is that...a bad thing?" he breathed against her face.

"No," Hadley said softly.

Freddie inched closer to Hadley, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. They kept coming closer and closer, and then Hadley kissed the side of his mouth. Freddie froze and watched her pull away, her blush intensifying. He found the rosy cheeks quite attractive on her. Well, nice going Page. Way to take it slow!

Then she suddenly smiled. "How do you feel about ice cream?"

That took him off guard. "Sounds good to me," he replied.

"Great, there's a cart for an old fashion shop just over there."

The two of them got up from the bench they had been sitting on and walked towards the little ice cream stand. The walk there was a nice, comfortable quiet that came with being around someone you could be yourself with. Freddie needed that. He'd had to be someone else for a long time. The two of them made it to the ice cream cart and waited in line. Every once in a while, Hadley would point something out to Freddie and explain it to him like Daisy Duke shorts. Christ what was the world coming to where men let their daughters and wives out in that?! Why didn't Hadley wear those?

When it was their turn, they both ordered, and Hadley pulled out her wallet to pay. Soon Freddie would pay her back for all the kindness she was showing him. It was embarrassing having a woman coddle him like this. He didn't like owing favors. When they sat, Freddie soon discovered what the evenings in the South could sometimes feel like. His dessert was getting to that point where at any second it could start melting all over him. Hadley giggled as she watched Freddie struggle to keep up with his ice cream, before it became a puddle in his hand. After a couple of minutes, he finally got it under control and avoided a dessert disaster. Then they both started laughing.

Once they were done, Hadley decided to take Freddie out to see an action movie in theaters. He absolutely loved it. He hadn't realized they could do so much with a film. Back in his first life...well, there wasn't even a comparison. All the way home, he and Hadley chatted about the movie until they got to her home. He even started using sound effects to reenact his favorite scenes. When they walked in, it suddenly became very awkward. The evening was over for now; it felt too soon to be over. Hadley kissed him before muttering goodnight and rushing upstairs, leaving him a gawking, shell-shocked mess. Well, what could he really do but go to bed, honestly? Of course, bed wasn't exactly the first thing on his mind…or the second.


	27. Chapter 27

The early morning air in the house was cool and filled with the fragrance of coffee being brewed. The home, Freddie noted, was drowned to the brim with a peaceful silence that he quite enjoyed until Edgar came down the stairs. Freddie didn't actually mind the youngster coming and joining him in the mornings as much as he thought he would. He usually liked his mornings alone to think and...well, man things. He was surprised the kid actually took to him; in his first life, he didn't have the best of reputations with younger ones. He was also surprised because the kid just lost his dad. The two bed heads sat side-by-side, slowly waking from sleep.

Edgar was running his fingers over a book in Braille; Hadley said he was being taught how to read it since he'd been permanently blinded. Over the days Freddie had been living again, he'd noticed that Edgar was catching on quite fast. He was quite the cerebral child. So how wasn't he noticing that Freddie was most definitely not Tommy? "You are becoming quite good at reading that."

Edgar's face reddened from the praise, but he smiled, nonetheless. He cleared his throat to clear his embarrassment and bit his lip much like his mother. "Well, it's thanks to momma, really."

Freddie smirked. "She's quite a gal, your mum."

"You like her, huh?" Edgar asked, closing the book and looking in Freddie's general direction. Freddie could feel himself tense up at being caught. "You always tried to talk more to her."

"What do you mean?"

"When you were stuck to the picture," he said, like he was explaining to him that fish needed water. "You tried to talk to me and momma a lot. I could kinda see you...I can still kinda see you. It's like you're hiding inside something like an Easter egg."

"Is that so?" Freddie said more than asked.

"Yeah. I remember momma used to get all quiet after you tried to talk to her. I think it scared her."

"I see," Freddie said. "So...how do you feel about me being here? Are you okay with that?"

"Yeah. You seem cool," Edgar said before he fell quiet. "Your name's Freddie right?" he murmured.

"That's right."

Lowering his big blue eyes to the ground, the lad continued with a cloud of reluctance hanging heavily over his head. He didn't want to bring up what was on his mind for fear of how Freddie would react. "Can I...can I call you dad?"

Freddie's eyes expressed his sudden surprise. Was that healthy for a child so young to replace his father? That didn't take very long. Edgar swallowed hard, nervous. Freddie's response came slow and evenly. "Sure. I don't see any harm in it as long as you're okay with it."

"Oh," he said softly, kicking his legs out. "I'm hungry."

Freddie laughed. "Alright, let's see if I can still manage to scrape by in the kitchen, shall we?"

"Daddy…my old daddy…used to make blueberry pancakes. Can you do that?"

"'Fraid not."

When he looked up though, he saw Hadley watching him from the top of the stairs. She had a small smile on her face, and her eyes were swimming with tears. She started walking down the stairs, her robe billowing behind her to reveal bare pale gams. Oh Christ, Freddie needed a cold, cold shower. Maybe he would just spend breakfast pressed against the freezer. He followed and sat as Hadley sat out a quick breakfast and started getting Edgar ready for school. She walked with him outside where a bus waited, but when she returned, things were much quieter.

"That was really sweet of you, Freddie."

God, he hated emotional talks. "Boy needs a father figure. I'm in his dad's body. It seems to work."

Hadley looked at him and smirked. "You don't see it, do you? Your features have changed a lot...you don't really look like Tommy anymore."

They sat in silence for a while, drinking coffee and reading the paper or eating. However, there was something that kept nagging at Freddie. He wanted to ask Hadley about it, but he didn't know how to go about doing any of it. His window of opportunity seemed to be closing when Hadley went to stand. He grabbed her wrist quickly. "Wait...I uh, wanted to ask you something. Edgar said something about me trying to talk to you before I woke up. Is that true?"

Hadley paused and sat back down with a sigh. She looked conflicted. "What do you remember...before you woke up?"

Freddie tried to think back. It seemed so long ago, but it had only been one or two weeks. "I remember...being in a dark tunnel. I could see a light, but it was always just out of reach. I finally got ahold of the little bastard, and then I woke up. It hurt, like my head was being rattled and snapped in two. Then there was an electric jolt, like a massive shock."

Freddie could still remember that day quite clearly. After the nurse checked his vitals, Freddie was rushed to a hospital. Hadley was there trying to calm him down, but he was frantic enough that they gave him what Hadley said was a sedative. The whole time he laid in that hospital bed, he wondered if he was dying all over again. He felt like he was being reformed at a painfully slow pace; it was as if all his bones were breaking and his muscles were reattaching in new places. The whole time, Hadley and her sister…what was her name? Kitty…Katie, no it was Catie. Those two were talking over him about something called "legal ramifications" and how Hadley was still his "legal caretaker."

He asked them what was going on, and Catie was the one who was talking to him. "Look, Tommy, you've got amnesia. These shitty doctors don't know how long it will last, or what will happen. You're…are you sure about this Hadley? That little fucker could be faking it. What if the ass tried to hurt you?" Christ that woman had a mouth. Hadley of course, refused anything other than Freddie coming home with her. Catie still didn't trust him and probably never would. The fact that Hadley kept lying to cover up the changes in him didn't help. Catie had already threatened to castrate him and "fuck him up into next year."

Hadley nodded, staring into her cup. "Well, I'd see you out of the corner of my eye sometimes. I saw you in the mirror once when I was showering," Freddie almost wished he remembered that. No, he definitely did. "You showed me a book at the library, and you held my hand in court. You hugged me sometimes. I heard you say my name, and I had dreams about your life. You actually saved me from Tommy too. Put him in the coma."

"Christ, I must have scared you. I'm scaring myself."

Hadley smiled. "Yeah. It was creepy at the time. If I knew then what I do now though, I'd probably not be scared."

"Why?"

"I trust you," she said looking at her phone.

"Did I...do anything else?"

Hadley touched her arm and looked away. "That's a long story."

"C'mon," Freddie said, inching closer. "I told you about me didn't I? It's only fair you do the same."

Hadley smiled. "Well um...I should start at the beginning. I married Tommy after I met him in college. We had English Lit classes together, and I worked as a freelance editor. I did some papers for him, and I actually helped get one of the papers published. We dated for a while, and I introduced him to my best friend Chris, and then he wanted to get married. He instantly wanted kids too...right off the bat. I wanted to wait and enjoy each other though, but when I got pregnant I was so happy. Tommy treated me like a queen. That was probably when Tommy and I were the happiest was when I was pregnant.

"After Edgar, I went back to work, and I started seeing Tommy distancing himself from me," Freddie could see tears welling in her eyes. He was starting to regret this, but he owed it to her to listen. She listened to him after all. "I called one morning when he didn't come back from drinking with Chris. He was...having an affair with him. He just gave up on us."

Freddie felt unease well up in his gut. Is this what he and Hester did to William? He wasn't this much of a wreck though. "You always expect there to be 'another woman,' not another man. I moved here onto my parents' property with the kids, and things were normal for about a month or so. I even let them take the kids out. One day they took them to the zoo and...and Chris dozed off while driving. They got into a wreck. Anna, my daughter...she um...died. Edgar was blinded," she said, sobbing. Freddie offered a hand to her and she clung to it like it was her lifeline.

"Tommy wouldn't sign the divorce papers before that, so I added on that I wanted full custody of Edgar. They...we went to court to fight for him," she sniffled. Freddie was nearly ready to throttle these blokes himself. "Then, I-I tried to kill myself when I heard they might win," she said quietly. Freddie could feel himself withdrawing. "You saved me."

"What?"

"You told Edgar. He told Tommy," she said, showing him the scars. He stared at the scars as his mind reeled. He fought to save people like her...men lost their lives. How could she think her life worth so little? This wasn't like Hester though. This woman really had been through the ringer. He ran his fingers lightly over one raised scar.

"And then?" he asked.

"Tommy tried to hurt me. Physically kill me, and you knocked him out."

"Serves him right," he grumbled, still running his fingers over her arm.

Hadley cleared her throat and got up. "I'm running late. I'll be back at around five this evening."

"Wait," he said softly. "Do you have any photos of your daughter?"

Hadley nodded and showed him the photo. There was an odd feeling in the back of his mind. She looked familiar. He couldn't possibly know her though could he?


	28. Chapter 28

Hadley was awake late, looking through hers and Tommy's wedding photos. She was still dressed in a thin cotton summer dress and her lab coat. She looked so young and pretty with her hair in an intricate updo with fresh flowers and pearls in it. Her wedding dress was gorgeous too, but it just made Hadley look all the more plain in it. Tommy wore black trousers, a black vest and a white button up shirt. Even in something so plain, he completely outshined her in every way possible. Hadley could already feel the tears coming. Soon, she was a sobbing mess. Makeup was a thing of the past, and her eyes were puffy and sore.

When she turned the page, Hadley's sobs just got harder. There was a picture of Tommy and Chris standing together. Chris was the best man for their wedding, and he and Tommy had had such fun cracking jokes and drinking champagne. Hadley saw a picture of the three of them together; they looked so happy. Why did it have to change? Why did anything have to change? Hadley ran her fingers over her dark, ugly, raised-up scars on her arms and let more sobs escape her sore, inflamed lips. It was late; she could suffer alone...the way she deserved to be. Hadley was crying so hard she didn't hear the door open and shut.

"Hadley?" Freddie's voice called as he sat at the edge of the bed. "I heard you downstairs."

"I-I'm sorry," she said, trying to hurriedly wipe away her tears. "I didn't mean to wake you. I-I was just...going through some old memories."

"Memories?" he asked. She pushed a photo album at him. Freddie started flipping through it quietly. "You look very beautiful in these. You must have been happy. I've never seen you smile like this before."

She sobbed. "It was all fake. All of it was a lie."

Hadley heard Freddie take a deep breath; he was staring at the ceiling above him as he thought. Suddenly, Freddie stood and went to the bathroom. He returned with a wet washcloth. He brushed her thick, dull brown hair out of the way to press the cloth to her puffy face. Hadley jumped when the cold dampness hit her burning face. She opened her eyes to look at him. "I've been trying to understand, Freddie. I really have. I know...I..." The tears flowed anew down her red cheeks as she curled in on herself.

Freddie sighed and pulled her into his arms, her tears soaking his shirt. He leaned against the headboard of the bed with her still in his arms. He held her while she cried, never saying a word as she poured out her pain in the form of tears. However, she soon began to calm down until it was silent except for her quiet sniffling and shuddering breath. Hadley just buried her face in his chest and listened to Freddie's heart. He even smelled different than Tommy. She felt a stir in the pit of her stomach and froze. Was she...starting to have feelings for Freddie? Was that okay?

"Hadley?" Freddie asked in a low voice.

"What?" she asked, her voice thick with the emotions she was fighting to control.

"I usually hate getting emotionally involved, but...do you want to know what I think?" he inquired, running his fingers through her hair. She realized early on that Freddie was very physical, and she figured he wanted a physical relationship to go along with it judging by how he looked at her. It had been so long since she had that attention; she had to be careful.

"What?" she asked.

"I think that Tommy was a no-good prick who didn't know what he had in you. You're beautiful, selfless, kind, a bloody fantastic cook," he said, making Hadley laugh weakly. "He got a woman way out of his league when he got you. And then you gave him two gorgeous kids and a home to come to every day. Most lads I knew back in the good ole days would kill for that sort of thing. He should've been appalled at the state he left you in," he said softly.

"Would you?"

"Would I what?"

"Kill for a family?"

Freddie sighed and looked at the ceiling again. "I don't know."

"How can you men hide such big secrets for so many years?" she inquired.

Freddie was quiet. "We think we're trying to save the women we love from pain, but in the end we hurt ourselves and them more. It's a horrible excuse...isn't it?" he asked, running his fingers down her bare arm.

"Yes. The worst one of all." Hadley shivered under his light touch that tickled her. She wasn't sure how much thinking she could do if he did things like that. There was almost too much to think about. "I'm sorry I woke you."

"Don't worry about it. You should get some sleep," he said, standing and heading for the door.

"Thank you."

"There's nothing to thank. Those beautiful blues shouldn't be so sad," he said putting his finger under her chin and smiling before finally leaving. Oh yes, she'd have to be very careful.


	29. Chapter 29

There's an old saying that a soldier's life is 99 percent boredom and one percent stark panic. That's mostly true; though the proportions usually vary. That time in between bouts of panic hung heavy on a person's mind. For Freddie Page, his first life had been more like 50 percent fear and 50 percent adrenaline. However, Freddie had been having too much of that typical 99 percent boredom lately.

He loved Hadley and her family, but he needed something a little bit less...domestic to curb his need. He needed something borderline panic and adventure. He needed excitement and adrenaline again; he wanted that feeling he used to get up in the air. He remembered when he was called the jet no gun could hit, no radar could pick up, and that no Kraut could track. Some of his buddies used to swear he was half transparent. After the war though, Freddie couldn't look at a plane without practically losing his top. He had taken a leap with the job in Rio as a test pilot, but he had been desperate. Now though, Freddie thought he'd be able to handle getting into the cockpit. If not...well at least he tried something.

Freddie stood when a thin, tall man with wispy red hair, big black eyes and freckles came to meet him out in the arid Southern air. His teeth reminded him oddly of pebbles in their uneven and tiny jaggedness. His thin lips could barely cover them, and they peeled back to his gums when he smiled. Only a mother could love that ugly mug. "Hey, man, name's Langley. We got your results back. You aced the written, and anything you missed on mechanics was minimal. You in the military or somethin'?"

"Haven't seen a uniform in a long time," Freddie said, shaking the offered hand.

"No shit. What were you?"

"RAF pilot. It's been a while."

"Awesome, man. Well," he said, handing Freddie a key with a large rubber neon green thing on it. "Last part of the interview. Go through all the steps like you memorized once you're up in the air. Let's see how the crowd likes you."

Freddie went to the plane that corresponded to the key number. He climbed in and sat in front of the controls for a moment. This model was much different than his old one back in the day, but everything was pretty much the same. He started up the engine and nearly groaned at the sound and feeling of its familiar purr. He started getting excited when he got the go ahead signal over the radio; as he left the ground, he couldn't help but cackle in his own excitement. Christ, he forgot this feeling. The drop of his stomach, the giddiness of his heart and his blood rushing in his ears just made it so much more fantastic.

Once he was fairly high up, he began doing barrel rolls in slow succession. Then he did what Langley called a hammerhead, making Freddie whoop and holler. He followed another pilot in a knife edge flight and zoomed off to his right. Christ, Freddie hadn't had this much of a rush in years. Entering his second-to-last maneuver from the bottom right, Freddie increased the power and gently pulled the nose skyward. At full power with the nose straight up, he checked the wingtips, left and right. Then he tilted his head back to find the opposite horizon. As the plane continued over the top on its back, the pilot saw the horizon go by the nose upside down. Beautiful. As the earth filled the windshield, Freddie reduced power. With the nose down, the plane accelerated and the G-force increased. He couldn't remember when he had had this much of a rush. As the nose approached level flight, Freddie eased back pressure off the control stick, and the loop was completed. Then he did a vertical spin and was signaled to go ahead and land.

When he did slowly bring her in for a landing, Freddie sat in the cockpit as the engine died down. His heart jumped though as he started to hear blanks fired and fireworks go off; it made him remember his comrades and buddies being shot out of the air. He could remember hearing the static when they wouldn't...couldn't respond over the radio. Then he could hear the sounds of shots being fired, bombs falling and exploding. His breathing was getting shallow; Freddie was going to pass out. Blackness was filling his vision. However, the sound of a knock at the cockpit door made Freddie snap out of it. It was Langley.

"Holy shit, man. You were great," he said laughing. "You okay?"

"I-I'm fine," Freddie said, wiping the cold sweat from his neck. "Do uh...do I get the job then?"

"Oh yeah, man. You're one of the best I've seen in a while. C'mon, I'll get you a schedule and shit."

Freddie followed Langley to a trailer with his business logo on the side. Inside there was a mini fridge next to a metal desk and four filing cabinets. It was filled with fans because of the hot weather. He walked over to a far wall where certain photographs hung in a place of honor. There were pictures of both men and women next to specific plane models. Some of those costumes though were a little much. Sequins? Tassels? Bloody hell, if they thought they'd get him in that, they had another thing coming entirely.

"Oh, hey, those are all the pilots that have moved on," Langley said from his desk, looking up every once in a while. "Now before you say anything, I wanna know what you think about being in our upcoming 'Planes in History' show. We need someone on our WWII model, and you seem to know a lot about the model we have. Your costume could be an RAF uniform?"

Freddie smirked. "Sounds good. I'm all for it."

"Seriously? Sweet, man, I owe you. Okay, so just come here on your scheduled days, and practice is on Monday mornings. You start next week."

Freddie took his schedule and grinned like a cat, looking at his paper. He actually got the job. He could quit leaning on poor Hadley like a bloody crutch. He could take care of himself, and maybe he could help take care of her too. When he stepped out into the sunlight, he didn't notice the bulky blonde prat waiting for him. "I was impressed," he said, making Freddie swivel around. "You outflew those other pilots six ways from Sunday. You were good...very good. Imagine my surprise when I discover that my soulmate has a kink for flying."

Freddie scowled and took a step back. "I thought I told you to bloody well fuck off."

"Last time I checked, Tommy, you hated flying with a passion. You wouldn't even let me take you to Fiji for a vacation."

"My name is Freddie."

Chris started laughing. "Oh, is that what she's telling you to keep you now? Baby, get real. You know who you are, and you know you don't belong with that bitch and-"

Freddie saw red. He rammed Chris into the side of a car and shook him by the collar of his shirt. "You fucking bastard! Don't you ever talk about Hadley like that again! And don't you dare come near me or that family ever, ever again!" he snarled before marching away. "You do, and I'll blow your bloody head off!" he warned before jumping on his bike and zooming by him.


	30. Chapter 30

"Well, Mr. Wilson, looks like you have a bad set of lungs on you," Hadley said as she fished around for the right place to cut the lung itself from the bronchial tube. "And this is why we don't smoke," she added. She was elbow deep in his abdominal cavity when someone buzzed at the door. Groaning, Hadley punched in the code with her non-gory nose and returned to her work when it dinged, signifying someone came in. "What is it now, Doyles?" she snapped as she buried her hands again with an ugly squelch. "I'm kinda busy."

"If this is a bad time," Hadley's head snapped up. That wasn't Doyles. That was Freddie, and he was carrying two paper bags. "I can come back later."

"Freddie, oh, oh I'm sorry um...you can just go into my office while I get to a stopping place here. What did you bring?"

"Chinese. I got everything you put stars by in the takeout menu, just to be sure." As Freddie walked by, Hadley finally got out the lung. He stared at it in shock and his color was starting to go. "What is that?"

"It's the left lung."

"They aren't normally...that uh-"

"Black? No, usually they're a healthy pinkish color. This guy smoked."

Freddie visibly paled. "Smoking does that. I-Is it lethal?"

"Oh, people die from cigarettes all the time. You can even die if you're near smoke for too long," Hadley said as if chatting about the weather as she weighed the organs and took samples. When she looked up, Freddie was gone. Shrugging, she put the lungs in a preservative jar and got cleaned up. It was good to put a healthy dose of fear into everyone who didn't know the dangers of smoking. Her stomach growled as she took off her gown, and she decided to hurriedly join Freddie in her office.

When she entered, the savory smell of Chinese food hit her nose. "Oh, you're here. I sat out yours for you," Freddie said before using his plastic fork to shovel rice into his mouth.

"Thanks, you didn't have to do this, you know," she offered, turning the Pandora radio on quietly on her phone. "I don't want you wasting your money on me and Edgar."

"I wanted to. Besides, with the job working out as it is, I can spoil myself and you two as well. I intend to take you on a proper date soon."

"This isn't proper?" she asked sarcastically as she used wooden chopsticks to eat lo mein.

"Like I said, I intend to take you on a proper date," he chortled.

"Keeping our cards close to our chests I see. Well fine. How's the job?"

"It's going...well I suppose."

"I sense a but somewhere in there."

"But I still get a few jitters...from my old days flying in the War. It…it did a number on me."

She knew it. Hadley had the sneaking suspicion that Freddie suffered from PTSD. Who wouldn't after going through what he went through? With a sigh, Hadley sat up a little straighter. This would be a hard subject to approach with him. She hoped she didn't step on any toes. "I was afraid of that."

"Why is that?"

"I think you need to see a doctor," he tensed when she said that. "I think you have something called PTSD. Now, when in danger, it's natural to feel afraid. In PTSD, the fear reaction is changed or damaged. It usually develops after a terrifying ordeal that involved physical harm or the threat of physical harm. Sound familiar?"

"There's nothing wrong with my mind," he snapped at her.

"Okay," Hadley said calmly. "Do you have flashbacks? Nightmares? Numb and angry? Fearful?"

Slowly, Freddie's aggressive resolve started to cave. As she listed off each symptom, his shoulders slouched more and his eyes got older. Hadley sighed and put her hand on his knee. "This isn't a bad thing, Freddie. It happens to a lot of people. I have it and so does Eddie. Okay? We just need to get you checked out. We need to make sure you're all good. You'll be back to your old self in no time."

"You're sure?"

Hadley smirked. "Would I lie?"

Freddie sighed and ran a hand over his slicked-down hair. "Well, I guess not."

There was an awkward silence as they continued to eat. Now that that fiasco was over, everything just seemed to be better when it was quiet. When "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles came on though, she gasped and turned up the sound on her phone. By the panicked look Freddie gave her, she thought she probably scared him. "Sorry," she laughed. "This is one of my favorite songs."

She sat and listened to it for a while, staring off into nothing. However, when she looked over at Freddie, he was offering his hand to her with a smirk. "Would you like to dance, madame?"

All Hadley could do was nod, giggling like a school girl, as Freddie took her into his arms and started to slowly dance. "This song...it's sad. Why do you like it so much?" he asked, looking down at her with those gorgeous blue eyes.

"It's about a girl," Hadley said, laying her head on his chest as they continued to dance. "She's in love with a guy, and she knows she shouldn't be. No matter what she does though, she knows she can't leave him. It's forbidden love."

"Why are you smiling?" he inquired.

"I'm happy," she said, looking up at him.

Freddie pulled Hadley in closer if it were possible. If she looked up at him, their noses would be touching. He pressed his face into her hair as they continued in their slow, intimate circle. Far too soon the music stopped and some odd rock song came on. Freddie stopped moving, and so did she. They didn't pull apart. "Hadley," he said. She still had not moved her head from his chest. His hand left her waist and lifted her chin up so that she could see his face. "Do you think that...we're like that song?"

Her silence spoke volumes.

"He's gone, Hadley. Tommy is dead. Don't let him control you. Let me in," he said, nosing her cheek, getting closer to her lips.

With that, he leaned down slowly and gently pressed his lips against hers. Hadley responded in kind and moved the hand that had been on his chest to tangle in his hair. Before either realized it, the kiss had become rather intense and neither was ready to back down. It was not until Hadley was shoved up against her desk that they broke apart. They were panting, and Hadley's office phone was ringing loudly in their ears. That seemed to be the mood-squasher for the afternoon.


	31. Chapter 31

Freddie pulled his bike into a dusty parking lot and turned it off, letting its purr die down before he kicked out the stand. Hadley had been trying to guess where they were going ever since he lead her out of the house an hour or so ago for their date. So far, they'd been to dinner at a fancy restaurant, but when they got back on the bike, Freddie started driving further and further away from home. Nearly thirty minutes later, they were at their destination. It was an open field, but it was in the middle of nowhere. Freddie had even positioned them away from the city so they couldn't see the lights unless they walked over the hill blocking their view. It felt a tad bit creepy out there…like she was being watched. That was silly though.

"Is this where you confess all your crimes before you kill me and bury my body?" Hadley asked with a joking tone.

Freddie scoffed. "I'm offended, Ms. Mercutio, that you'd think that of me," he said as he helped her off and he reached into his pack and pulled out a blanket which he tucked under his arm as he tucked Hadley under the other.

"You're not exactly inspiring confidence with that."

Freddie laughed. "You'll like this, I promise."

Hadley stopped and gave him a scathing look. "Did you bring me out here to try and have sex with me?"

"What? No," he said almost too quickly. She was starting to get suspicious.

Suddenly, he came to a stop and released Hadley to spread out the blanket, which he then sat down on. When he was comfortable, he looked up and held his hand out to her, and she begrudgingly took it and lowered herself down slowly as well. Freddie then reclined and tugged Hadley with him so they were both lying down on the blanket and looking up at the sky. Hadley curled up in the crook of his arm and laid her head on his chest.

Instantly, she started laughing. "Really?"

"What?" he asked innocently.

"You are so cheesy, you know that?" she teased. "Star gazing?"

Freddie chuckled and kissed Hadley's hand. "Ah, but it's effective."

Hadley leaned in and pressed her lips to Freddie's, and he readily granted her tongue access to his mouth. They lay together for hours...well, it was more like minutes, before Freddie finally broke away. "Star gazing, Hadley."

Hadley sighed. "Alright, alright, let's get this over with."

Freddie searched the sky. "Oh, right there."

"What?"

"It's a propeller."

"Seriously? You're doing airplane constellations?"

"Alright, your turn."

Hadley smiled. They were quiet for a moment while she looked at the sky and Freddie looked at her though she pretended not to notice. "There. It's a cat."

"Looks more like a lion."

"Nuh uh," she retorted.

"Well fine. That over there is a chicken."

"If you say so."

"I do."

They continued playing their game, and Hadley slowly started to enjoy it. "Oh, I think I found my favorite," she said after a moment of silence.

"Where?"

"Right there. What's it look like to you?"

"A banana?"

She chuckled. "You're cute."

"Well, what is it?" Freddie asked, confused as to why his answer was wrong.

Hadley leaned over and whispered the answer to him. He took in a quick gasp of air and went rigid. His body temperature seemed to sky rocket beside hers. "Oh," he said in a whisper. "I see."

Hadley smiled and pulled his face down so she could kiss him. When they broke apart, they were both panting. "Oh, Freddie. Thank you. But we need to get back."

Freddie sighed. "I know," he grumbled. "Your sister is already dying to string me up. No need to give her an excuse to, eh?"

Hadley slowly folded up and dusted off the blanket before turning around. Freddie was right behind her. After he got a good look at her face, he smiled. "You're gorgeous," he purred before he kissed her sweetly.

"Come on," she blushed. "If we drive fast enough, we can see Edgar before he goes to bed."

"He's supposed to be asleep."

"I know. But Catie's watching him."

Sure enough, when they got back to the house, Edgar was still awake, and a quick glance at the TV showed that Aladdin was playing. "Hi, momma. Dad."

"Hi, baby. Did Aunt Cat give you a bath?" Hadley asked as she took in her son's wet hair and pajamas.

"Yup."

"Okay. It's bedtime."

"But-"

"Nope. You're already supposed to be asleep."

"Listen to your mum, boy," Freddie said, tickling Edgar and lifting him up. He flew him around the room before handing him off to Hadley.

Edgar rested his head on her shoulder, and Hadley gently laid him down in his bed upstairs, unsurprised to see that he was already asleep when she laid his head down on the pillow. "Night, little man," she murmured.

Hadley went downstairs to see Freddie alone. Catie already left it seemed. "Thank you so much, Freddie."

"You're welcome."

"Come with me," she said softly. She led him up to her bedroom and made him stand by the bed until she found what she was searching for: Tommy's wedding ring. Hadley bit her lip and offered it. "I want you to...to have this."

He looked shocked. "Hadley, I-I couldn't-"

"No. I want you to take it and do what you like with it. Burn it. Wear it. Whatever. I'm putting him to rest. Speaking of which, I know that couch is a bitch. How about you sleep in here tonight?"

Freddie smiled. "I'd love to."

"No funny business?"

He chuckled. "I can't promise anything if you insist on wearing those silk pajamas."

"Sweatpants it is then," she said, kissing him as she went to change in the bathroom. She did wear the silk top though just to be daring.


	32. Chapter 32

Hadley stood facing Chris Hemsworth in the most unlikely of places: her workplace. The people up front told her a man had asked for her and said he knew her personally. They just let him in without a second thought, and they never checked his ID. If they had, the red flag would have popped up that he was not allowed on the premises without an escort. He was sitting in front of her computer in her office, looking through her internet browser history. Hadley felt herself getting nervous...maybe scared was a better word choice. Terrified would probably be best. He would kill her; it was the perfect place for it too. He had all the tools to cut and gut her, and this was a place to keep the dead after all. No one would notice her absence until it was too late.

The scuff of Chris' shoe on the floor brought her back to the present. She tightened her hand around the handle of the door and studied Chris warily. "You seem sombre," Chris announced with a dark grin. "I think it's this depressing workplace. How's little Edgar? Is he doing alright since he y'know, lost his father?"

Hadley didn't move as Chris stalked forward. She had nowhere to go. "He's fine." She thought about the gun in her desk. There was no way she'd get to it without him attacking her first. "You should leave...for your own good."

He scoffed. "I don't need protection from you, sweetheart. Try the other way around."

Hadley gave a smile. She hoped he'd buy her bluff; he was dumb enough to fall for it. "You need protection from me more than anyone. I'm in my element."

Chris scowled. "I'm on to you, Hadley. I saw that paranormal shit you've been lookin' through."

Hadley's jaw clenched. "Oh? Is that so."

"Yeah, and I'm sure now that you murdered Tommy. Now you've got that dumbass pilot Fredward something-"

"His name is Freddie Page."

"That's what he keeps telling me," he growled, rolling his eyes as he continued to close in on her. "He seems to like you. Good job on that. That star gazing date...very romantic."

An overwhelming chill shot straight up her spine. Someone had been watching them. Were they ever going to be safe again? "You stay away from us," she spat. "Or I'll-"

He chuckled and pushed past her and to the door. "No. He's still my soul mate deep down. I'll see you around, Hadley. When I do, I'll have Tommy back in my arms and-"

Hadley wasn't listening to him. She was too busy diving for her desk and going for the pistol in her desk. Tommy had told her to buy it when she started doing serious work with the police. He had been concerned for her wellbeing. She wondered if he ever considered her using it against Chris. Hadley felt the cool metal touch her hot palm and grabbed it, whipping around to see Chris' back still in her view. She hadn't shot a gun at a person…ever. Now was her only chance. She had to prove to herself, to Chris…and to Freddie that she could defend her family. She straightened herself, and she pulled the trigger, not allowing herself to think about what she was doing.

A gunshot echoed around the room. Hadley watched as Chris ducked and then gawked at her. She couldn't believe it either. A moment of silence and still passed between them. Hadley lifted the gun again with tears in her eyes and shaky hands. He made a run for it, and soon the cops were piling into her lab asking her questions. Chris was long gone by then, but Hadley was still standing in her office with her gun out, shaking. She actually shot at the first cop she saw. Doyles was the one to get her to calm down enough to talk. They finally had enough to get a restraining order against Chris now that he actually made contact, but that was all they could do. Hadley felt so hopeless. They made her go home in the end. Freddie would be back from his show by then. Good. She needed to talk to someone.


	33. Chapter 33

It felt like decades since the mere thought of a girl could stiffen Freddie's cock, but Hadley was so different from any of the women of his time. She had such honesty and expected nothing from Freddie except that he be himself; it was refreshing. Then there was her beauty. Even Hester could hardly compare to Hadley. She had the most delicate porcelain skin, and her lips were like...Christ, nothing compared. Already as he thought about her, Freddie's cock stirred to life. She had always been there for him. She went to his doctor's appointment when he got the PTSD diagnosis, she was there when he thought about getting a job, and she was there when he woke. Did he...love her?

Hadley barged into the house, looking a mess and scaring Freddie from his reverie and alone time on the couch. She looked like a scared rabbit as she shut all the curtains and locked the door. That's when Freddie got up and managed to corner her with his arms against the wall. "Hey, easy...easy," he said into her hair. She was shaking like a leaf and clinging to him. "Come on, sit on the couch. Now, what happened? Did something go wrong at work?"

Hadley nodded. "He was there."

"Who?"

"Chris." Freddie felt his rage starting to bubble and boil. He'd kill him; he'd fucking kill him. "He came and...he's been watching us, Freddie. He followed us to the park a-and he said he'd be back and-"

"Shhh," Freddie pulled her against him to hide his rage from her. "It's going to be okay. I won't let him get to you or Edgar. I'll take care of everything."

She shivered. "Promise?"

"You have my word." Suddenly, Freddie felt Hadley pushing him back onto the couch. She was looking down at him, their faces hidden by a curtain of her long, pretty brown hair. Her body still shook slightly on top of his; what was she thinking? "Hadley?"

"I'm ready."

"Come again?"

"I'm ready to have sex."

Freddie bit back a curse as he hauled Hadley against his chest and stood, nearly running up the stairs to her bed. He was nothing if not adaptable; the military had taught him at least that much. He could never deny Hadley anything, he soon realized. He heard her giggle in a melancholy way as he laid her on the bed and climbed up over her after quickly shucking his pajama bottoms. He made quick work of her clothes, leaving her in a delectable pair of lace black knickers. Christ, they were lace. She arched her back slightly, her breasts brushing against his chest, and he felt his cock jump in anticipation. He groaned low in his throat as his palms ghosted over her hips to slip into her underwear and cup her ass gently.

"Freddie," she sounded so nervous.

Hadley's blunt nails scored his shoulders as his mouth dropped to lap at her breasts with hot, open-mouthed kisses. Freddie's mind reeled at the feel of her in his arms, his hands slipped her out of her underwear down her thighs while she continued to grip at his shoulders and moan sweet, breathy noises of encouragement. Her hands moved boldly down his spine, coming down to grip and knead at his ass. What was it about his ass that women loved so much? His hips bucked, his cock glancing against the soft bare skin between her thighs. Her breath hissed out against his neck and he could not suppress his grin. This had been well worth all the waiting she put him through.

He kissed her then, chasing her mouth with his and conquering her tongue with his own. She tasted clean and sweet all at once. Freddie's hands moved of their own accord, touching, teasing and learning all of her secret places. Hadley broke the kiss, chest heaving as she fought to regain her breath and let her lips hover over his. Freddie ran a hand up her thigh, stopping at the junction between her thighs, allowing a finger to slip through her slick folds. "You're positively dripping."

"Freddie...I'm ready," her eyelids fluttered. "Just go slow. It's been awhile."

He chuckled. "I understand. I'll be gentle," he answered, slowly inserting the tip. With careful control, he pushed in, inch by inch, and Hadley continued to emit little moans and whimpers that escaped her as her body adjusted to his length. When he was in as far as he could go, he paused, watching her face. "You're incredible," he groaned, leaning down to kiss her. "Are you comfortable?"

She nodded. "Understatement."

He grinned and began to move, thrusting with shallow strokes at first, giving her time to get used to him. The friction had them both moaning and writhing.

"Freddie," Hadley gasped, as his thrusts continually hit a spot she never knew she had.

He grunted, placing his hands beneath her thighs and bringing her legs up, resting them on his shoulders. "Am I hurting you?"

She shook her head wildly. "No," she managed. "Don't you stop. Don't you dare stop."

Freddie obliged, angling his thrusts to hit the spot he knew would drive her over the edge. He increased his pace, and before long, Hadley's eyes rolled back in her head and she tore frantically at the bed sheets, twisting them in her fingers until her knuckles went white. "Freddie! Freddie...Freddie... Oh, yes, Freddie..."

He grit his teeth as she clenched tightly around him, his thrusts wild and erratic as his own climax barreled down on him. He groaned low in his throat, thrusting hard one last time as he shot his seed into her. After he finished, he removed himself and lay on top of her, careful not to crush her with his weight. "Oh my god," he gasped. "Fucking hell, that was incredible," he smiled at her, kissing her sternum gently.

Hadley smiled and ran her fingers through his hair as he rested his head on her chest. "Wow...just wow."

"Gimme a few minutes," Freddie said tiredly. "We're going again."


	34. Chapter 34

If not for the soft sigh and shift of linen, Freddie would not be awake. It wasn't unusual for him to be pulled from sleep by such subtleties though. The military had broken him of habits like deep sleep. Gently, he pressed close to Hadley beside him, nuzzling her hair for a moment before relaxing into the linens once more. One of his arms was tucked gently around the dip of her waist, fingers drawing circles into the small of her back as her face hid in his chest. He looked at her sleeping face and smiled at it because it looked so unmarred by emotion. It was a blank canvas. He could make her either terribly sad or very happy.

It is not often Freddie woke before Hadley. Though he is a light sleeper, Hadley is the one who can survive with fewer hours wasted with dreams. She always told him she blamed it on medical school and its horrors. It is logical though that Freddie sleeps lighter and longer while Hadley sleeps deeper but less. His head is pillowed by his palm and supported by elbow as he watches Hadley closely and touches her soft skin. Freddie believed he was beginning to actually love someone...in a real love kind of way. It was terrifying but thrilling all at once.

Sighing softly, he slid his fingertips up along Hadley's hip, following the line of her side and going over her ribs. Her supple, pale flesh was warm beneath Freddie's fingers. Dragging his fingers slowly over her hip, Freddie let out a small breath as he gazed upon her sleeping face. Smiling to himself, Freddie trailed his fingertips along Hadley's thigh, back over her hip again and across her slightly distended stomach. She was so soft, void of hair and scars unlike him. Dipping his head, he kissed her shoulder before running his fingers along her ribs once again. However, Hadley shifted under his touch, rolling onto her opposite side and facing away from him with an airy groan.

Huffing, Freddie smirked to himself as he stared at Hadley's naked back and shoulders, admiring the pale flesh for a moment. Biting his lip gently, Freddie's eyes roamed the visible length of her bare back, finding the small but ample cover of sheet over her to be just enough of a tease that a small swell occurred between his legs. He should have excused himself from the bed, let her rest and care for himself in the bathroom. But he didn't...he wasn't _that_ much of a gentleman.

Quietly, Freddie slid over in the bed, leaving nothing between his body and Hadley, resting one hand on her hip. When she didn't stir, he gently curled his fingers into her hair to brush it away from her smooth pale neck. He leaned in, kissing the back just at the base where neck met shoulders and became back, and he moaned into her sleep-heated skin. He kissed her neck, nuzzling her hairline. The hand on her hip shifted and slowly cupped under her thigh, lifting her limb. Pressing close, Freddie's hips were flush with the supple curve of her thighs and ass. Moaning again, he wrapped his arm around Hadley's leg, shifting it back so that her hip wouldn't lock painfully and wake her, and he slid his cock between her thighs, the head dragging against her clit.

Hadley's body twitched, but she remained asleep. Freddie smirked, burying his smugness into her soft hair as he rubbed his cock head against her moist sex. He groaned behind his teeth, careful to keep his sounds at a dull roar. One hand on her hip, Freddie pushed into Hadley, finding her still open from the day before. He moaned softly, sheathing himself fully inside; Hadley moaned, eyes shut and body lax. Biting his lip, Freddie dragged his hand down to her lower abdomen, pushing just a bit deeper, pinning her close.

Gently, he reached around to rest his palm over Hadley's mound, fingers teasing the top of her slit until his found it: a small, round bud that, upon stroking, Hadley's entire body jerked and a moan escaped her. Smirking, Freddie wiggled his hips and thrust slowly in and out as his finger swirled along the skin around Hadley's clit. Beside him, Hadley was quivering, body instinctively tightening and moving with Freddie's thrusts. She had an arm under her head, fingers twitching gripping her own hair. Her mouth fell open, and Freddie relished in the quiet gasps and moans.

"Geez, Freddie, can't I get some sleep," she moaned, not turning as he kissed the side of her neck, thrusting harder. His hips moved rhythmically, and Hadley arched softly as another moan took her.

"You held off from me for so long," he murmured, nipping her shoulder gently. "I need you."

Before Freddie could go further, Hadley pried his hands away and slipped off his cock. Surely she wouldn't torture him this much? Whining, he reached for her, only to be rolled onto his back, staring up as Hadley straddled him and sank down. Freddie watched as his cock disappeared inside her, and he arched, moaning. He snarled, arching again, his hands coming to grip onto Hadley's hips, holding firmly as he ground into her. She arched, her head back as a moan erupted from her lips, and Freddie grunted softly as he began to thrust.

He rolled his hips hard and precise, angling the weight of Hadley and his own aching cock in such a way that he ground along her upper walls. Freddie's eyes roll back as he dug his heels into the bed, fucking Hadley as deeply as he could. He felt her hands gripping his thighs. Shouting in pleasure, Freddie all but slammed his entirety against Hadley's body, reveling in the sensation of her nails in his chest, her cries of ecstasy in his ears. Warmth soaked around his cock, gushing against his hips and thighs, and he snarled, filling Hadley with his own release. Panting heavily, Hadley collapsed over Freddie, a mess of twitching limbs and shaking thighs. Freddie kissed her as she slowly recovered.

"Of all of the ways you could have woken me...me thinks this was the most fun."

"I thought you might like it."

Hadley smiled and looked away. "Freddie I...I know it's really early but...I think I might love you."

"I know. I might too."

"Does that scare you?" she asked worriedly.

"Yes."


	35. Chapter 35

Chris trailed a finger over the smooth surface of the photo he looked at as the air show wound down, taking in every detail of the person in it. He took in Tommy's strawberry blonde curls and admired those pretty thin lips. Chris had never seen a man as gorgeous as him before. Perhaps that was why he'd never been able to put him out of his head since they first met. When Chris looked at the photo, he found himself filled with warmth he didn't often experience otherwise. Now though there was an imposter tainting his Tommy from the inside out. He had to save him.

He replayed what he was about to do over and over again in his head; nothing could go wrong. Chris waited behind the trailer that Tommy went into after and before every show waiting for his chance when the show was over. Suddenly, he heard a familiar pair of voices: Hadley and Edgar. Shit. Tommy wasn't alone today. Carefully, Chris leaned a bit to the left, and his heart stopped when he saw them. It always did. He felt his blood run cold and the little hairs at the back of his neck stood up straight. Tommy pulled her closer. Their lips met, and Chris thought he was going to be sick. That slut!

"You were great, Freddie," Hadley said, smiling.

"Momma told me what was going on. You did awesome!" Edgar said grinning as Tommy picked him up and spun him as he depicted how it felt. "What's it like up there?"

"Like sex."

"Freddie!" Hadley giggled like a child. Chris wanted to snap her neck. He'd be doing Tommy a favor. "Not in front of my baby."

"What's sex?"

"I'll tell you later, big guy," Tommy said chuckling.

He was forced to watch the new couple kiss briefly before Tommy went into the trailer. He came back out, and they started heading to the parking lot. For a moment, he wanted to chase after them, but no, he just started walking behind them. When he got up close, he decided to give away his position. "Hey, baby," he called.

When Tommy turned, his eyes weren't his own. They were dark and filled with malice and deep-seated rage directed at him. Hadley's eyes were wide as Tommy handed Edgar to her. She held him close as Tommy pushed her behind him as if he was going to protect her. He looked quite different than when Chris last saw him. He didn't even look like Tommy all anymore. Chris needed to save Tommy...and soon. "I thought I told you to bugger off, jackass?" he snarled.

"You know I can't leave you, baby."

"Prick," Tommy said, spitting at his feet. "What the bloody hell do you want? Why are you following us?"

"I'll tell you what," Chris said smirking. This was going just the way he wanted. "I'll drop off the face of the Earth, but I have one condition."

"Well spit it out. I don't have all fucking day."

"One: you take a DNA and STD test, or two: you just go to one little dinner with me at my home."

"Why an STD panel?" Hadley asked.

"Tommy and I found out we shared something special just before you beat him to death."

"Oh God."

Tommy looked at Hadley and asked her something quietly. She nodded and looked at Edgar, trying to cheer him up despite her own paleness and irritability. "Alright," Tommy said darkly. "One evening. I call all the shots."

"Sounds great, baby. Call me."


	36. Chapter 36

Freddie woke to the sound of humming. He tried to recognize the sound, but he failed miserably. He quickly realized there was a bright light overhead, making his eyes ache even though they were closed. For a moment, he thought he or Hadley had forgotten to turn off the light before going to bed, but that was ridiculous. Neither of them would forget something like that. The air smelled alcoholic, and his nose ached. Suddenly all the memories of before came back. He had come over to Chris' for a demanded date to get him out of his hair, and the bastard strangled him.

Freddie jolted and realized he was tied to a chair in the center of a room. There were symbols and candles all over a table in front of him as well as another chair. He would kill that bloody little prick when he got out. There were no windows, and he realized that he was likely to be tortured. That thought frightened him, and he felt his hands tremble. He recalled Rio suddenly and the flashbacks started. Christ, no...not again. Freddie tried to focus. He was an adult man, so he should keep his wits about him. He needed to think and get out of the situation!

Minutes passed...perhaps even hours. Freddie started to think about Hadley and Edgar and wondered if they'd noticed he was missing yet. He felt his heart contract painfully at the thought of leaving Hadley heartbroken again. He loved her, he missed her warm touch, and he wanted to hear her soothing words. He wanted to feel her arms around his neck so that he could smell her long, brown hair.

Suddenly, Chris entered the room. "Sorry to keep you waiting," Chris said with a smile. "I was just buying you something," he said, lighting a lighter under a spoon.

Freddie's eyes narrowed.

Freddie swallowed heavily while a dozen questions flooded his mind. As Chris sat and put the fluid in a fresh syringe, Freddie felt something tugging in his chest roughly like someone was using him like a pinball machine. Then he doubled over and started coughing. Pain flooded through Freddie and tore at him viciously unlike anything else. It felt just like when he had first started to wake up. Suddenly, he lost control, and his body started to shake. Then there was only black.

* * *

Freddie groaned when he next felt consciousness begin to pull at him. He was surrounded by warmth, and something very soft was brushing against his bare skin. Freddie tried to roll over when he felt and heard something unfamiliar: handcuffs. He tensed and opened his eyes then to look up; he was cuffed to the headboard of a bed. He looked around the room and instantly remembered he was last in Chris' company, and when he turned, he found none other than the bastard himself. There was a problem though. He was naked. Freddie was naked. Christ...what happened while he was out?

Suddenly, Chris purred deep in his chest and pulled Freddie into him. He could feel the bastard's dick against his leg; he thought he would be sick. "Get off me you sick fuck!" Freddie snarled sharply. He used as much force as he could muster and socked him in the mouth. Chris grunted and rolled away as Freddie continued to beat and wail into him until Chris finally pinned him down.

"Tommy, baby, you're alright."

"No," he protested with newfound strength. He hit Chris in the face, but as he moved to do so again, he grabbed his hand. "I'm not Tommy! I'm Freddie! Freddie!"

A moment passed where nothing happened before Chris just pinned Freddie to him and went back to sleep. He needed to get out before something godawful really happened to him. When the beefy git rolled away, Freddie sat up and looked at his hand. His old pal in the RAF told him a way to get out of handcuffs; Freddie would have to dislocate and then relocate his own thumb. Grimacing he held his thumb and sat his weight on the joint. There was a dull pop, and stars filled Freddie's vision from the pain. Shuddering, he pulled his hand free and re popped it, so it was back in place. It still hurt like a bitch.

As he crept down the hall, he tripped over a pill bottle, and it rattled as it rolled across the floor. Fear moved like a claw around his heart, gripping it tightly and crushing it. What if Chris heard him? He reminded himself to breathe: In and out. In and out. He could do this. When he decided the coast was clear, he continued until he got to the kitchen. The front door was right there, and he could see his bike outside.

"What are you doing?" Chris' voice asked with a strained and edgy voice.

Shit. Freddie wasn't breathing anymore. He could hear Chris coming towards him; Freddie's muscles tensed. Before Chris could grab him, Freddie took a wine bottle and swung at Chris' head, the impact causing it to shatter. Chris cried out in pain, drops of blood trickling down the side of his face. Freddie went to run but he was abruptly stopped. "You are mine, do you understand?" Chris screamed as he strangled Freddie. "When will you accept that?"

Freddie jerked away and ran for the living room where he kept a small gun collection in a glass case. Without thinking, Freddie used his body weight to break through and grab the first thing his fingers brushed against. Turning, he faced a bloody-faced Chris, huffing and panting much like himself. Chris held up his empty paws in surrender. "O-Okay, Tommy, you win this. Go ahead. Leave. I won't follow."

Freddie paused. Was it really that easy? No. It wasn't. "No."

"What?"

Freddie never wished to use a gun on someone, but he had no other choice. He needed to make himself...his family safe. Was this what he had come to though? Being forced to use an actual weapon? He couldn't think about it for long. Desperate times called for desperate measures. "Ever since I first looked at you, I hated you," Freddie spat. "You hurt a family and an innocent woman for your own selfish reasons."

Chris paled. "Y-You'll get caught."

"Hadley's a coroner."

Chris swallowed heavily.

Freddie charged and kicked his feet out from under him, pinning him like he pinned Freddie upstairs. There were tears in his electric blue eyes. Good. Freddie's fingers coiled around the cold metal of the gun. He inhaled deeply, and counted down from ten out loud.

…Three. Two. One.

He pulled the trigger.


	37. Chapter 37

"Momma, the news is boring," Edgar groaned as he curled up with Hadley on the couch under a thick cotton blanket. "A new Power Rangers is supposed to come on tonight. Can we watch that instead?"

Of course, only Hadley would be able to watch it. Edgar just listened, and sometimes he would ask questions of her if she giggled or jumped. He did really well with recognizing sounds, voices, songs, and instruments now that his sight was taken. It was barely affecting his day-to-day life except in the obvious places. He was adapting well like she hoped he would.

Hadley smirked. "You don't wanna hear about momma's investigation skills?"

He huffed. "No."

Hadley laughed and acquiesced control of the television remote, turning the channel. As the fast-paced theme music filled the room, Hadley was almost regretting her decision. She pulled the blanket closer to both of them and leaned back into the couch, closing her eyes. Soon Edgar was nuzzling into Hadley's arms, settling himself between her legs. He set his head on her chest as he stared in the direction of the television. The only thing that could have made it better was if Freddie were there to enjoy the moment with them. He was out trying to deal with Chris; he said he could handle him best one-on-one. Chris wouldn't just stop with those tests. He would never leave them alone unless Freddie took care of it permanently.

Suddenly the door burst open. Freddie was there in tears, panting. He looked so scared and awful. His skin was flushed, and he had scratched and hickies on his neck. Shit. He had bags under his eyes, and he looked wasted. Hadley turned up the TV and told Edgar she'd be back in a moment. When she got up the stairs in the hall with Freddie, she watched as he completely broke down and nearly collapsed in her arms. He told her that he had been drugged and raped and then he killed Chris. He'd used a gun, and it made Freddie relapse horribly. Hadley pulled him into a hug and tried to calm him down.

As his breathing regulated though, he started kissing her and unzipped his fly.

"F-Freddie! Freddie, calm down. Hold on a second, honey."

"No, I need to be in you," he mumbled as he pulled down her sweats and began kissing her throat, tears leaving smudges on her chin and neck. "Now."

Hadley groaned softly as he rubbed himself up against her. "Okay. Okay."

Freddie needed no further preamble and pushed himself in. It burned slightly, and it was tight because it was so short notice. He just groaned and stayed still, pressing him forehead to hers as he sobbed into her shoulder. Hadley just rubbed his back and hoped Edgar couldn't hear them. When she was wetter and more relaxed, Freddie began to move. Hadley groaned and pulled him against her to take him in further. Freddie moaned and began to move faster and harder, but it didn't last long. Hadley orgasmed first, clenching tightly around Freddie. He had just enough sense of propriety to bite his lip as he nearly shouted his release.

"God, I love you," he breathed as he slipped out, still holding her against the wall. I'm sorry. So sorry. I failed you."

Hadley smiled. "I love you too, Freddie," she said before pulling away. They needed to get dressed before Edgar started snooping around. "Take some medicine and come downstairs. We can all watch a movie together. I'll take care of this Chris thing if the police investigate. We'll be okay."

Freddie smiled. "I know."

"And Freddie."

"Yeah?"

"I know it wasn't your fault. We'll be alright," she said, hugging him tightly before they headed downstairs. "Everything's gonna be alright."

"Thank you."


	38. Chapter 38

Hadley was coming into work late. She and Freddie had gotten tested for any STDs Chris might have passed around, and the doctor told them he wanted to see them both. They sat in his office like a pair of teenagers that got caught doing the deed in the school parking lot. When the doctor actually came in, he had a smile on his face. Good news, perhaps? They were both clean. Both Freddie and Hadley let out a loud gust of breath as the mood in the room suddenly let up. The only thing the doctor said looked off was Hadley's pH balance!

Apparently it had taken the police eight days to find out about Chris' death. By then, he was a smelly, decomposing mess and there was hardly any evidence that was in good condition. The police, though, were ever-diligent and demanded an autopsy in case there could have been any other way other than suicide. Apparently Chris' parents didn't believe their son could commit suicide. Sadly, they were correct. When Hadley took on the autopsy, her supervisor had been wary of giving it to her, but Hadley convinced him that she needed the closure.

As she was walking to her lab, an assistant stopped her in her tracks. "You're going to need this," Molly said, a bottle of Vicks vap-o-rub in her hand. Molly was a petit blonde with a tiny button nose and bright, always-cheerful brown eyes. Hadley had taken her on as an assistant two years prior because, at the time, Molly reminded Hadley of herself. Now though she just seemed naïve and innocent. Hadley just hoped she didn't have to get hurt like she had been. Maybe there was a way to avoid that.

"That can't be a good sign. How bad is it?" Hadley asked.

"Very." Molly's own upper lip gleamed from a coating of Vicks.

"Great. Just great," she grumbled as she squeezed the cream onto a finger and spread it on her upper lip and into the rim of her nostrils. The smell was sharp and powerful but familiar. It wasn't odd to have to use Vicks. "Molly, would you go finish up my paperwork and get the papers on Mr. Hemsworth started for me? Thank you. I'll go ahead and get started on the examination."

As soon as she stepped in, Hadley had to force herself not to gag.

Even with the menthol the smell of rotting human flesh was overwhelming. Hadley suited up and did an external before opening him up. Even with her six years of work under her belt, this was bad enough to make her gorge rise every once in a while. It was like looking at Chris soup. Brains were splattered all over the place and his eyes were dangling by the optical nerves over his blonde hair. His would definitely be a closed-casket event.

"So, Chris, it looks like you got into a fight with Freddie. I'll wipe you clean of DNA, and well, your temper will make an excuse for those bruises." When she got to the head-most of which was in a bag-she grimaced. "Shit. That headshot is impossible for a suicide...guess that bullet won't go to forensics. Here, one under the chin. Perfectly done. Guess Freddie will get a night on the boob pillow for that one."

Hadley kept any unnecessary evidence on her person in case of emergencies. All the other evidence was put into jars to be sent to the forensics lab an entire city away. She started fishing out remains of Chris' organs, and she took eight samples of blood for cultures and other tests. She wanted to test him for HIV and AIDs. "He warned you Chris. You just couldn't listen," she sighed, rolling him into a freezer. "Can't say I'm sad to see you go, though," she hummed with a grin. "Baby."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter. It's been fun!


End file.
